


Possibilities

by Brunhild



Category: Vikings (TV)
Genre: F/M, Terms referencing certain handicaps/Medical conditions, Vikings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-09
Updated: 2019-02-21
Packaged: 2019-07-08 19:47:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply, Underage
Chapters: 3
Words: 25,719
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15937055
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brunhild/pseuds/Brunhild
Summary: A seriously ill Ivar is sent back to Kattegat in the company of three young women who were sent to take care of the young prince. Athelstan is alive in this story and plays a surprising role in Ragnar’s fate. In this story, Lagertha does not kill Aslaug, she is in Hedeby raising her young son and daughter by Kalf. Also, all of the Ragnarssons are alive and will remain that way. Thorstein is still alive in this story and is raising his twins after their mother died unexpectedly.





	1. Chapter 1

Possibilities

A seriously ill Ivar is sent back to Kattegat in the company of three young women who were sent to take care of the young prince. Athelstan is alive in this story and plays a surprising role in Ragnar’s fate. In this story, Lagertha does not kill Aslaug, she is in Hedeby raising her young son and daughter by Kalf. Also, all of the Ragnarssons are alive and will remain that way. Thorstein is still alive in this story and is raising his twins after their mother died unexpectedly.

Chapter 1  
Tuesday Morning  
Mid October Just Before Sunrise

Ivar was placed on the ship by King Eckbert’s men, he was to be sent back to Kattegat without his father Ragnar Lothbrok. Ragnar had been captured and taken prisoner by King Ebert to be handed over to King Aelle for punishment. The crippled young man was sad that his father was imprisoned and would probably be killed. There was nothing else that he could do, nothing would change Ragnar’s fate, Ivar wished his father had listen to his mother about sailing back to England, especially with so few ships and a small crew. King Ragnar’s ship had washed up on the shores of Wessex in late August. The ships had totaled four in all. Three ships of men were lost at sea, the survivors argued with Ragnar and blamed him for their misfortune, the survivors of the shipwreck were later killed by Ragnar out of anger. He had been forewarned of a dire fate that would cost him his life. Aslaug had told him this, but he had chosen to ignore her. Ragnar had wandered for days in the forest before he finally surrendered to King Eckbert’s authority. The king was planning to hand Ragnar over to King Aelle to be killed in three weeks. Ivar silently swore revenge on both men. Ivar knew that he would return to England one day to take revenge on the two kings, but he would need a great army and his brother’s support. Right now, he just wanted to go home, he was running a fever and coughing, his throat was sore and raw, his bones ached too, his broken leg was not healing as it should either. Ivar had broken his leg shortly before he arrived at King Eckbert’s villa. The two girls that had been sent to care for him, looked at him with concern, Ivar was gravely ill. The girls did not understand why they had been chosen to watch the young prince.

Earlier in the week

Enid and Bethany were sitting in their cabin by the water. The two girls hopped that someone would bring by some more firewood that they would need to get by another week. The two girls were sent to Wessex six months ago. King Aelle had grown tired of the gossip surrounding the two girls, Enid was his niece by his half-brother Lord Wigea whom he had killed years before. The girl’s mother Ruth, had died months ago after a brief illness. The girl having no immediate family, was to be taken care of by King Aelle. King Aelle had treated both mother and daughter as an obligation to be endured, he sent the child’s mother just enough to live on and no more. He felt little reason to subsidize their existence, after all he had hated his brother after he failed to keep the Vikings from invading the kingdom of Northumbria. The two men argued bitterly over Lord Wigea’s failure. After a particularly violent argument, the quick to anger King Aelle callously had his brother pushed into a pit of deadly vipers. The man died almost instantly. King Aelle had his widow and young daughter moved to a hut in an outlying village in Northumbria. Out of sight, out of mind thought Aelle when he moved the mother and child there.  
Aelle had another distressing problem as well, what to do with his illegitimate daughter Bethany. King Aelle had fathered the girl during a brief indiscretion years ago. The girl’s mother had been a handmaid to his wife Ealhswith. He had been fascinated with the young girl and had wasted no time taking the girl to bed. The young girl, Ava, had told King Aelle that she was carrying his child. King Aelle arranged for the young woman to be taken to a nearby village to live. She was given a yearly allowance to care for her and the child. When his daughter and niece were teenagers, King Aelle arranged for the girls to take a position at the local abbey to help with cooking and cleaning for the sisters and the brethren in the nearby monastery. There had always been rumors surrounding the girl’s parentage, certain rumors had gotten back to Queen Ealhswith. The Queen had confronted King Aelle about the accusations which he rebuffed. King Aelle told Ealhswith that there were to be no more discussions on the matter. Nonetheless rumors still persisted around the girl. When the girls were not working, they spent their time at the cabin near the water where they lived. The two girls got along well and often confided in each other. Bethany’s mother had married a nobleman and had moved to Scotland, leaving Bethany behind.

One spring, King Eckbert sent word to King Aelle that he needed young women to serve Princess Judith as handmaidens. King Aelle immediately thought of Enid and Bethany. Now he could legitimately send both girls away and no one could question him. King Aelle immediately sent word that he would send two young women to King Eckbert’s court, King Aelle told the two young women that they were to pack their belongings and leave immediately, Aelle also sent a letter with the two young women detailing who they were and why they were not to be allowed to come back to Northumbria for any reason. The journey to King Eckert’s kingdom took about four days. By the time the young women had arrived, Princess Judith had chosen two other young women from the village, the young women were quite sad about possibly being sent back to Northumbria. King Eckbert told the young women about needing extra servants around the estate to help with various chores, the girls agreed and decided to stay in Wessex, they were given a cabin near the water near King Eckbert’s estate.

It was late fall, and the two girls were starting to get homesick. The days were starting to get short and the evenings and nights were cold. The girls made the best of their time. They weaved and made cloth, dried herbs and made medicines for illnesses. They prepared foods for the upcoming winter as well. They made a little extra money mending clothing for local people, they also tended the elderly and infirm occasionally as well.

One day in mid-October, the two young women were summoned to appear before King Eckbert. They were told to bring enough clothing to last several days and anything else that they may need. Enid and Bethany wondered why they were being called to the estate of King Eckbert. The two girls rode in the carriage sent by King Eckbert to his estate. They were greeted by several servants who invited them into the dining room of the castle. King Eckbert was in the company of the priest Athelstan whom the king had saved from crucifixion years before but had never allowed to go back to Kattegat. The young man had served as an advisor to the king since then. The two young women greeted the King and his advisor. They were invited to sit down. King Eckbert looked over at the two young women who issued him a formal greeting.  
“Good evening girls, how are you doing?”  
“Fine your majesty.” Answered the two girls. King Eckbert looked at the two young girls and smiled. He wasted no time in telling them why they were called to his estate.  
“I suppose you are both wondering why you were called here to me this evening.” King Eckbert paused as his son Prince Athelwulf, Princess Judith and Princes Athlelred and Alfred walked into the room. The girls rose to greet the family but, Prince Athelwulf motioned for them to remain seated. The family sat down at the table and the servants began serving the food.  
“As, I was saying, I suppose you wonder why I have asked you to come here this evening. Well recently, I was approached by Ragnar Lothbrok and his crippled son Ivar. Ragnar threw himself and his son at my mercy, Ragnar and I have had our differences in the past, he invaded my lands and caused the deaths of many of my people, I have tried to make peace with his people and look past our past differences, but I find that I cannot, but at the same time I, have found myself greatly admiring this man. In his shoes, I probably would have done the same things that he has done. My ally, King Aelle has suffered greatly at the hands of Ragnar Lothbrok, so I have decided to send Ragnar Lothbrok to King Aelle to be tried, judged and disposed of as he sees fit.” Ragnar Lothbrok was the man that King Eckbert kept chained up in one of the spare rooms. He was guarded constantly and only allowed out to eat with the king occasionally. The sad, old, unarmed man did not seem like a threat to anyone, King Eckbert said that he was the most dangerous man alive on earth today. King Ragnar had always been kind to them when they had taken him his meals on several occasions.  
“Ragnar will be sent to King Aelle in less than three weeks, his son Ivar is being sent back to Kattegat. He is a cripple and not a threat to us, but his father asked me to send him home, it is the least that I can do. The boy has some type of affliction that makes the bones of his legs weak. When he came here, he had a broken lower leg and it is healing slowly. When the ships leave for Kattegat, I plan to send both of you to attend to the boy’s needs. He is often in pain and rather melancholy. It is late in the year, I will send word with the ship’s crew that you are to come back in the springtime. I will send a ship for you at that time and you can return to Wessex, that is if you choose to.” The girls looked at King Eckbert in surprise, as did Prince Athelwulf and Princess Judith.  
“Father, I don’t believe that you would send these young girls off to the savages in the North. They are not rational, sane people, they kill without so much as a thought, father how could you.”  
“Normally I would not have considered this, but the boy has to be sent back. He is not doing well, he is homesick and injured, it would look bad if the boy died here with us, I do not wish to incur more wrath from the Northmen. It is settled, the boy goes back, he will be on a ship tomorrow morning at first light. Do you girls understand why you are being sent with the prince?” The girls slowly nodded.  
“Good then, this matter is settled. You will be sent north to Kattegat to watch over Prince Ivar. I will send word that you are expected back here in the springtime. You will be well compensated for your time. You will have the financial resources to sustain yourself until you return. You have provisions and clothing packed already. You have warm clothing packed because of the extreme cold in the north. The boy has new clothing packed too. There is medicine and bandages for him as well. Anything that he needs will be sent with him. I cannot send one of my physicians from the village for such an extended time because physicians are so rare to come by, Widow Edmunds is being sent with you as well.” King Eckbert was rambling to himself. Widow Edmunds had been one of King Eckbert’s former lovers.

Bethany and Enid looked at one another. They did not know what to think. They could not refuse the king, but they did not want to go to Kattegat and live among savages. Prince Athelwulf saw the uncertainty in their eyes. Maybe he could talk with his father and change his mind about sending the two young women to an uncertain fate.

Spare Room in King Eckbert’s Castle  
Athelstan walked to Ragnar’s room with his dinner, the guards were at dinner too and the door was unlocked. Athelstan knocked on the door and walked into the room. Athelstan walked over to Ragnar who was chained up, he took the key down and released Ragnar from his cage and chains.  
“How are you doing this evening?”  
“I have been better.” Said Ragnar as he slowly sat up to talk with Athelstan. Ragnar stretched and yawned.  
“I have some news for you, do you remember when I told you that there were several envoys of King Charles the Bald at the monastery. The men know your brother Rollo, The Duke of Normandy, I spoke with them about your brother, it is said that Rollo has become a great man. He has much respect from the people there. He is married now with three children, two sons and a daughter. He and his wife are well loved by the people.” Ragnar slowly smiled.  
“I am happy for him.”  
“As you should be. The envoys said that your sons Bjorn and Hvitserk are visiting their uncle there.” Ragnar had tears in is eyes.  
“Several of the envoys left a few weeks ago, they should be back by now. I gained the trust of one of the young men and I sent a letter by one of them to give to your brother Rollo explaining your plight. I have not heard back from him. King Eckbert asked me would I like to go back with the envoys that were sent here from France, they had been sent to retrieve several religious artifacts for King Charles the Bald, I told him yes that I would be happy to go back with them. I told him that I expected to be back before the Yule season if the weather holds up.”  
“I wish you the best of luck Athelstan, I hope that you make it there and back safely. I will not be here when you get back, I will be dead at the hands of King Aelle by then.”  
“No you won’t.”  
“I don’t see how I can avoid it.”  
“I plan to get you out of here before they send you to King Aelle. I leave for France later in the week, Wednesday morning as a matter of fact. The plan is to smuggle you out in a crate that is going to France. I will think of a way to get you out of this room and slip you into a packing crate to be packed on one of the ships headed to France. When you get there, hopefully Bjorn and Hvitserk will still be there and we can sail home with them.”  
“We? You are coming back with me this time?”  
“Yes, I would have went back with you years ago, but King Eckbert would not allow it.”  
“It would be great to be back in Kattegat once again wouldn’t it?” Athelstan nodded. He reached over and hugged the man and prepared to leave, Ragnar looked at him like he had expected him to stay while he ate his dinner, Athelstan sat down in front of Ragnar.  
"Athelstan, thank-you for trying to help me, I only hope that this plan will work.” Athelstan talked with Ragnar while he ate, after Ragnar had finished his meal, Ragnar bid him good-bye and Athelstan walked out of the room, he did not know that Prince Athelwulf had been watching him leave. The guards went to the room that Ragnar was in to make sure that he was placed back in his cage. Princess Kwenthrith who had been watching Prince Athelwulf watch Athelstan, tip-toed up behind him and put her hands around his eyes, he moved her hands and turned to her.  
“Why were you watching a lowly priest carry out his duties, shouldn’t you be taking care of your royal duties, more specifically—me?”  
“Kwenthrith, I really don’t trust that priest, he betrayed his position in the church once upon a time, he is an apostate. He has broken God’s commandments.” Kwenthrith smirked.  
“So you haven’t broken the commandments, no lying, no cheating, no stealing, no killing. Oh wait, what is that other one, something about adultery, I just love it when you break that particular commandment.” Kwenthrith kissed Prince Athelwulf passionately on the lips. He reached up and touched her breast. He smiled and followed her to her quarters. 

Tuesday Morning Dawn

The three ships had been made ready a week ago. Prince Athelwulf and King Ecbert went to see the young prince Ivar off. King Eckbert felt that the young man should be sent home, he was no real asset to him, the boy was a cripple, useless. He was sick and may not even survive the journey back to Kattegat. The girls Enid and Bethany had been entrusted with his care. The two young women looked over at the sickly young man. They worried that his care was beyond their expertise. Widow Edmunds was sent with the girls to watch over the young man as well as the young women too. It seemed like the unwanted women in the village were sent on this voyage she observed. The three women were to be in the North the entire winter and sent back in the spring. King Eckbert sent a note to Ragnar’s son Prince Bjorn expressing his desire for this to happen. Ivar and the women were put on the larger ship in middle. A smaller ship was in the front and in the back of the ship. King Eckbert’s men placed Ivar on the ship, he was in great pain, his leg had been broken before he came to King Eckbert’s villa, a physician was called to heal the bone, but he had not been successful. The young man had a condition that the physician had never seen before. Ivar explained his affliction to the physician; the man continued to treat him and came by to see him daily, he enjoyed the doctor’s company, the doctor taught him how to play chess and told him stories of the English people. He gave the young man something for pain and had managed to treat the infection that had began in the bone, but the bone did not heal. The doctor brought Ivar two sets of wooden crutches, he thanked the doctor for all he had done for him while he was at King Eckbert’s home. The physician talked with Ragnar and told him about Ivar’s condition and King Eckbert’s decision to send Ivar back to the north. Ragnar told the doctor that he understood what he was telling him about Ivar. 

Ragnar requested to see Ivar. He told him about King Eckbert’s plan to send him to King Aelle to be killed. King Ragnar told Ivar that he and King Aelle were sworn enemies because Ragnar had killed his brother years earlier before Ivar and his brothers were born. Ragnar told Ivar he should seek to punish both men. He did not tell him about the plan that he and Athelstan had, he did not want to get the young man’s hope up.  
“Father I will need an army to avenge you, I am a cripple, that is all anyone sees me as. What can I do?”  
Ragnar looked in Ivar’s eyes.  
“Your disability is your greatest strength. People look at you and see weakness, they underestimate you. They don’t know your mind. One day the whole world will know you and they will fear you!” whispered Ragnar. Ivar looked at Ragnar with tears in his eyes knowing he would never see his father again. Ragnar had decided against telling Ivar about the plan that he and Athelstan had, he did not want to get the boy’s hopes up in case the plan failed. The two men hugged as the guards came to get Ivar. 

Ivar boarded the ship held up by two of King Eckbert’s men. The three women told the two men to put Ivar on the makeshift bed that they had made for him. Ivar looked at the women with a scowl on his face. He had wanted to say something that would upset the women, but he was not in any condition to say anything. He found himself relieved to lay down, he had been so weak, that he could not walk using the crutches the doctor had gave him.  
The women covered the top of his body with many thick blankets. Widow Edmunds uncovered his left leg. His leg was bruised and still discolored. The woman told Enid to pass her the tinctures that she had packed and gauze to treat the broken leg, he had an open fracture. Ivar cried out when the medicine touched his leg. Bethany reached over to take his hand, he snatched his hand back and rolled his eyes at the young woman. Widow Edmunds gave him a mean look which let Ivar know that she meant business. He made no attempt to move his leg while she was treating him. Enid had a cup of tea which she handed Ivar. She told him to drink the tea, it would help his pain and help him rest. Ivar looked at the girl deciding whether to drink the tea or not.  
“Prince Ivar drink the tea, it will help you rest, if you don’t drink the tea, I will open your mouth and pour it down your throat, don’t try me young man!” Whispered Widow Edmunds. Ivar hurt too bad to back talk the woman. He did need something to help him rest, he had been awake the night before because of the pain in his legs and because he kept thinking about his father. Ivar drank the warm tea, he thanked Enid and handed the cup back to her. He lay back, daybreak was coming now, it was lighter outside, but it was cold and cloudy. The ships were making their way toward the open sea. Ivar hoped that the next time that he saw the shores of England, he would be here avenging his father’s death. Ivar started to feel sleepy, the pain in his legs was starting to become just a dull ache. Widow Edmunds propped his leg up on several pillows to make him comfortable. Ivar slipped off into a calm, pain-free sleep. He did not wake up until the midday sun was high in the sky. The crew was eating a late midday meal. Ivar woke up and smelled the food. It was baked chicken with carrots, celery, onions and potatoes. There was bread too, lemon loaf cake as well as cider. The smells made his mouth water.  
“Hungry?” asked Widow Edmunds.  
“Yes, the food smells very good.” Widow Edmunds motioned for Enid to prepare Ivar some food. The young woman prepared him a bowl of food. Widow Edmunds and one of the boat’s crew helped the young man sit up. Bethany placed pillows behind Ivar’s back. She placed a tray on his legs. Enid sat the food down before the hungry young man. He ate his food fairly quickly. Bethany took his tray and Widow Edmunds helped him lie down again. The tea still made him sleepy, but he was free of any pain. He looked over at Bethany and Enid who were sharing a book. Widow Edmunds was doing some kind of handcraft. The ships crew were taking turns rowing and steering the ship. He looked up at the cloudy sky, the sun was hiding behind the clouds. It was only the first day of the voyage, five more days to go if they were lucky. Ivar wondered what would the women do that were on the voyage with him. Where would they spend the winter? His mother Aslaug would have to find some accommodation for the women. He supposed that they would stay at The Great Hall for the time being. Ivar pondered this as he fell back to sleep.

Widow Edmunds and the girls wondered what would happen to them after they got to Kattegat. They would be living among savages who raped and killed with no remorse. They would be Christians living among heathen savages. Widow Edmunds did not bemoan her fate as much as she thought about what might happen to the young girls, the girls were only 16 years old, too young for circumstances like they had been placed in she thought. Suppose none of them were allowed to go home in the spring, suppose that they were kept as slaves. Curse King Eckbert for sending them into an unknown fate. Widow Guinevere Edmunds had been King Eckbert’s lover since shortly after her husband died a few years ago. Widowed at nineteen, the now twenty-five-year-old woman had lost favor with King Eckbert. As of late, he had found Princess Kwenthrith’s company more to his liking, so had his son Prince Athelwulf. Princess Kwenthrith had had sex with both men, but she liked the good Bishop Heahmund even more. Bishop Heahmund had a reputation as did Princess Kwenthrith, the two were the subject of constant rumors in the village. Bishop Heahmund had started showing an interest in Widow Edmunds and King Eckbert did not like this. Widow Edmunds knew that King Eckbert had sent her away purely out of spite.  
Enid and Bethany looked at the sleeping Ivar with distain. Neither of the girls liked him and they knew that he had felt the same about them. Prince Ivar hated Christians as did most Vikings. They dreaded the thought of spending an entire winter with him. The girls hoped that he would recover quickly, and they would not be responsible for him once he healed, but once he healed, what would happen to them then. The two girls turned around and looked out into the sea.  
The next couple of days found Ivar in a terrible mood. He cursed and fussed at the three women about his leg and just about anything else he thought of as well. He was coughing and feverish too. His mood matched the stormy weather that had found the sea travelers. 

It was Friday afternoon and Ivar had a high fever. He had had a fever and a slight cough when he had gotten on the boat. Today he was feeling much worse. He had a sore throat and had vomited several times. His leg was starting to heal, but now he had some type of chest infection said Widow Edmunds. The woman had placed a warm onion poultice on Ivar’s chest, to draw out the congestion from his lungs. Ivar fussed and complained about the smell.  
“Damn you three witches to Hel, what are you trying to do—kill me?” The young man’s outburst frightened the three women. The ship’s captain heard Ivar’s outburst and walked over to him. The tall, black-haired man looked down at him. The big man stood over him and looked him straight in the eye.  
“Watch that tongue of yours, lest I toss your arse off this ship, prince or no prince!” said Luke, the ship’s captain. Ivar looked up at the man.  
“I can say whatever I want, when I get where I am going, I could so easily have all of you killed!” shouted Ivar as he struggled to sit up. He had managed to get half-way up before a sudden pain struck him in the middle of the chest and forced him to lie down again. Enid pulled the covers over Ivar’s chest and told him to lie down. He did not protest, he simply did as he was told as he groaned in pain. Ivar started to shiver and turned on his side. Widow Edmunds turned to the girls, she looked worried. She and the girls walked to the other side of the ship. Bethany was the first to speak.  
“I don’t think that he is getting any better, he still has a fever and his chest sounds bad.”  
“It could be pneumonia, a diagnosis like that could be deadly since the boy is an invalid.” Stated Widow Edmunds. “All we can do is try and do our very best by him and pray that he lives. Hopefully we can get to the North, get this boy healed and get back home to Wessex come spring.” The two girls nodded and looked over at the restless prince.  
Over the next two days, Prince Ivar’s condition continued to deteriorate. The damp sea air did not help his condition. The three women worried about Ivar, they prayed that he would not die. His fever had gotten higher and he still had chills. He was very weak and could barely sit up. On Sunday afternoon, after the sun had started to descend in the sky, the port of Kattegat came into view. A loud horn was sounded, and many people had gathered around the shore, about an hour later, the ships reached the dock. People crowded around to greet the group. People from the shore came aboard to help unload the ships and help the people off of the ships. Thorstein and his men greeted the group. He was given the message sent by King Eckbert. Thorstein read the letter and invited the men to The Great Hall, he told the men that their ships would be provisioned, and they would be ready to leave by the end of the week. Sigurd and Ubbe walked onto the ship where Ivar was. Ivar was very ill. Sigurd and Ubbe worried, they had never seen Ivar this sick before. Both young men walked toward the place where Ivar was seated, he was very weak. Sigurd noticed how carefully the two girls wrapped Ivar in his cloak, the women had been sent to care for Ivar. Sigurd looked directly at the two young women and smiled. The young women noticed that he had eyes like they had never seen before, his eyes were an unusual shade of green, also one of the young man’s eyes bore the image of some type of reptile, a serpent. The two young women were frightened when they looked into to Sigurd’s eyes. Sigurd noticed the two girls staring at him, he smiled at the two young women once more, they gave him a slight smile as he turned to help his brother with Ivar. Ubbe inquired as to Ivar’s health.  
“How is he doing?” said Ubbe as he turned to Widow Edmunds.  
“He is in a bad way, he was sick when he left England, but he got worse as the days went on, he has a lot of congestion in his lungs and he has a broken leg which is not healing well, he’s feverish and fretful too.” Ubbe called one of the young slaves over, he told the young boy to find Elisef and tell her to meet them at The Great Hall. The boy ran back into the village to look for the woman. The two young men picked Ivar up and motioned for two young women to follow them. Widow Edmunds walked over to get ready to get off of the ship. Thorstein stepped forward.  
“Allow me to help you.” Said Torstein as he leaned forward to take the woman’s hand.  
“Thank-you.” Said Widow Edmunds as she looked at Thorstein as he extended his hand to help her. She looked up at him. He was a tall blond man with blue eyes and he had a beard like most Northmen. He had a friendly smile and seemed kind. Thorstein looked down at the short, dark haired woman with brown eyes. She seemed to have a nice disposition and a kind voice. Thorstein took her bag from her and he walked with her back to The Great Hall. 

Once at The Great Hall, Queen Aslaug greeted the group. She thanked the women for helping Ivar during his illness. Thorstein informed Queen Aslaug of the letter that was sent with the women. The queen told them that they would stay at The Great Hall as her guest. The women thanked her. Queen Aslaug told two slaves to show the young women to their quarters, they would have a room just off from the cooking area in the back of the hall. After they were settled in, they were invited to go and get a late lunch. The slaves escorted the young women to their room and showed them where they would be eating at. A meal was prepared for the young women and the rest of the ships’ crew. After meal, the ship’s captains would discuss Ragnar’s fate with Queen Aslaug and Thorstein. 

Wessex

It was Tuesday evening. Athelstan informed Ragnar that King Charles’ delegation would be leaving just before first light tomorrow morning. Athelstan told Ragnar that he had bribed and enlisted the help of three of King Eckbert’s guards to help them out. Two of the young men, brothers, were survivors of the settlement massacre years earlier. The young men were left orphaned when their parents were killed by Prince Athelwulf and his soldiers, they were then sent to live with a childless elderly couple that had passed away a few years earlier. The third young man was from Mercia and did not like King Aelle or King Eckbert. Athelstan had no problem gaining the young men’s trust and swore them to secrecy about his plan. Athelstan went to Ragnar’s room after dinner to discuss his plan with Ragnar.  
“It sounds like an excellent plan, I only hope that it will work, I would like to see my family once again. I don’t know how Rollo will feel about seeing me, he may very well return us to King Eckbert and King Aelle. Rollo betrayed me twice before, I don’t have any grand illusions about our reunion now. Have you heard from Rollo, did he write you back?”  
“No, I have not heard anything at all from him. We won’t know anything until we get to Paris, maybe it is best that way.”  
“Yes Athelstan, maybe so.” Athelstan looked over at Ragnar.  
“Here is the plan for tomorrow morning. King Eckbert allows you to go and take your bath early in the morning. The guards will escort you to the bath house and you will go in. I will escort you from the bath house from the side entrance and place you in a crate that is to be sent back to Paris with the delegation. Some religious artifacts are being sent to King Charles in several crates. We will place you in a crate on the ship that I am on. The three young guards that are helping us will be going with us, because we cannot leave them here.” Ragnar smiled when he heard the plan. The two men continued to discuss the plan. Ragnar hoped that the plan would work, he was supposed to be sent to King Aella on the next Saturday. It would take about six days to travel from Wessex to Paris. Hopefully everything would work out and they would not be found out. The two men talked until they were interrupted by Prince Athelwulf. Prince Athelwulf walked into the room.  
“Athelstan, my father wishes to see you.” Said the prince. Athelstan got up to leave.  
“I will be going now Ragnar, I will try to come and see you before I leave tomorrow.” Ragnar waved at the young man and told him good-bye. Prince Athelwulf walked beside Athelstan.  
“You and Ragnar Lothbrok seem to have a lot to talk about.”  
“Ragnar has been talking with me about being sent to King Aelle”  
“You mean to tell me after everything Ragnar Lothbrok has done, he is afraid of dying.”  
“No, quite the opposite, he actually looks forward to his fate, he says Valhalla awaits him, he does not fear death at all.”  
“So he thinks that he is going to the Heathen Valhalla, well let’s see what he thinks when he wakes up in the Christian Hell for what he has done!” said Prince Athelwulf as the two men stood in front of his father’s room waiting to be called in.

Paris  
Rollo read and reread the letter several times over the past week. The emissary returning from Wessex had a letter from Athelstan about Ragnar’s fate, his brother was to be put to death at the hands of King Aelle in three weeks. This news came as a surprise to Rollo. Rollo had not heard from his brother in years. The last time that the two men had met, it had ended with him defeating his brother on the battlefield in defense of Paris. He had loved his brother, but he had sworn to defend Paris on behalf of his father-in-law and wife Gisla. He had a reluctant admiration for his cowardly father-in-law, but he truly loved his wife and children. If given the choice again, he would have made the same decision. This situation before him now was different, his brother was in trouble and he needed him. Despite the differences the two men had, Ragnar was his brother and his nephew’s father, he loved the boys and would never do anything to hurt them. When he looked at the two boys, he saw a lot of Ragnar in the two boys. In Bjorn, he saw a future king, a man who would be wise and brave. In Hvitserk, he saw the curious explorer that Ragnar had been. Rollo knew he had to help his brother, he knew in his heart that he owed everything that he had become to his brother. If his brother had never decided to go west, he never would have become the man that he was now. Rollo thought about Athelstan, he had never really cared for the young man, but he admired how the young man had always remained loyal to his brother at all times. Ragnar and Lagertha had considered the young man a friend. Rollo realized that without Athelstan, Ragnar may not have discovered Paris and he would not be where he was now, Rollo thought that he should help the young man and Ragnar, it was the right thing to do. Rollo gave the matter more thought before he summoned Bjorn and Hvitserk to his study to discuss Athelstan’s plan.

 

Kattegat  
It was late afternoon, early evening before the women were finally able to settle in and eat a late meal. The young women were given a hearty bowl of lamb stew with wheat bread and cheese. The slaves placed mead and ale on the table too. Thorstein sat down at the table with the young women.  
“How do you find the meal, is it to your liking?” The girls nodded and smiled.  
“The food is very good. After the first day on the ship, we ate dry and cold food mostly, we could not warm up a lot of food. Thankfully it was not a long voyage.” Said Widow Edmunds. Thorstein laughed.  
“How is Prince Ivar doing, is he better?”  
“He is doing better since he is at home, but his condition is about the same. It will take some time for him to heal, he is still in a bad way, Elisef and his mother are with him now, he is very happy to see his mother, they are very close.” Widow Edmunds and Thorstein looked over at each other. Thorstein spoke first.  
“I did not introduce myself to you earlier, my name is Thorstein Olesson, I am one of the king’s advisors.” He reached over to shake the woman’s hand.  
“I am Guinevere Edmunds; these two young women are Enid Godwin and Bethany Issacs. We were sent to watch over Prince Ivar on his journey and be his caretakers, we will be here until the ships come back for us in the springtime.” Thorstein looked at the woman trying to understand why the women would be in Kattegat for that long.  
“Why are you not allowed to go back when the ships leave later this week?”  
“It is complicated, I fell out of favor with King Eckbert and the girls were sent to King Eckbert’s kingdom by King Aelle…” Widow Edmunds looked over at Thorstein like she would really like to explain the situation, but now was not the time nor place. Thorstein and the woman continued to talk until they were interrupted by his two six-year-old twins. The boy and girl ran into Thorstein’s arms.  
“Hello father.” Said Gyda as she sat down by her father. Guthrum stood before his father.  
“I am hungry father.” Thorstein summoned a slave and told her to bring the children some food. The children sat down in front of Bethany and Enid. The girls waved at the two small children.  
“I had almost forgot the children were with me at the hall, usually they are with Ubbe’s wife Margrethe, Bjorn’s daughter Siggy or at my mother’s home.” Widow Edmunds was curious.  
“You and you wife are not together?” Thorstein gave her a somber look.  
“I am a widower, my wife died last year, she drowned, she had seizures, she had one while she was swimming one day and she died.”  
“I am sorry, Thorstein. It must be very hard being a widower with small children to raise…”  
“It gets a little easier by the day, my mother and several other people in the village help me…” Widow Edmunds spoke.  
“I am a widow, I lost my husband in a battle in Scotland about six years ago. We were not married long enough to start a family.” The two people continued to talk until Ubbe and Sigurd came into the room. The two young women looked up. The two young men sat on either side of the two girls. Ubbe sat down by Enid and Sigurd sat by Bethany who was visibly unnerved by his action.  
“Hello, I am Sigurd Ragnarsson, Ragnar Lothbrok’s son, I am a prince.” Ubbe then spoke.  
“I am Ubbe Ragnarsson I am also a prince, the brother on the other side of you is Sigurd-Snake-The Eye!” Sigurd smirked at Ubbe.  
“He is also married with a new baby.” Said Sigurd. The girls giggled. Thorstein looked over at the young men.  
“Now that you have introduced yourselves to the two young women, why don’t you let them eat and get some rest before the two of you swarm all over them.” The young men gave Thorstein an annoyed looked and got up to chase after two other young women. Sigurd looked back at both young girls.  
“You will have to ignore those two, they are smitten with every new face that comes through here.” Said Thorstein. The young women had finished eating, the slaves cleared the table and the young women got up.  
“So, ladies, what are you plans this evening?” inquired Thorstein as he too stood up.  
“We are planning to go and see about Prince Ivar. He is under our care. Afterward, we will unpack our things.”  
“If you ladies, need any help at all, please feel free to find me and I will help you in any way that I can.”  
Widow Edmunds nodded at Thorstein as she and the girls turned to walk to Ivar’s room. 

Paris France  
Sunday Evening

Rollo summoned his nephews into his study after dinner. Sinric was with him. Rollo had not yet told his wife Gisla or her father about the letter that he had received from Wessex. He knew that King Charles nor Gisla cared for Ragnar at all and not that he had blamed them, after all his brother Ragnar had tried to raid and sack Paris. Rollo was a reasonable man who loved his brother despite their differences, he would help his brother. Rollo looked up as the door opened. Two guards escorted Bjorn and Hvitserk to his study. Rollo stood up and welcomed the young men inside. He dismissed the guards and invited the young men to sit down. The two men cautiously sat down in the gilded, padded seats in front of Rollo. Sinric looked over at Rollo. Rollo spoke.  
“Good evening Bjorn, Hvitserk.” The young men nodded.  
“Why have you called us here Uncle?” asked Bjorn, not sure of Rollo’s intentions. Rollo looked over and studied his nephew.  
“I have called you here to give you some news that I have received.” Hvitserk was curious.  
“What news have you received Rollo? Is it news from home?”  
“No, it is not news from Kattegat, I have received news from Wessex from the Christian priest Athelstan, he tells me that your father finds himself in some unfortunate circumstances. He is being held as a captive by King Eckbert who intends to turn him over to King Aelle to be tried, sentenced and eventually executed. I have heard about King Aelle, he is not a merciful man to his enemies, I have heard of many that he has executed by dropping them into a pit of snakes, a rather ghastly death.” Said Rollo as he looked at his nephews. The two young men looked at one another. Ragnar had finally gotten himself into a situation that he could not get out of this time. Lagertha was not there to help nor was Floki or Aslaug. Bjorn spoke up.  
“What can we do Uncle, we do not have an army to fight King Aelle or King Eckbert.”  
“We? I don’t plan to take action against King Aelle or King Eckbert, I do not have a problem with either of these men.” Replied Rollo. Bjorn got out of his seat.  
“So you are going to let your own brother be killed at the hands of King Aelle?” Rollo motioned for Bjorn to sit down. Hvitserk was visibly upset but did not speak.  
“Bjorn, there is very little that I can do diplomatically on Ragnar’s behalf, both King Aelle and King Eckbert hold me in the same regard as they do Ragnar. I doubt if Gisla’s father would intercede on Ragnar’s behalf either, he did try to sack Paris, or did you forget, however, it does seem that Athelstan has a plan to sneak Ragnar out of Wessex. He plans to help him escape when he travels to Paris with several French envoys sent to the court of King Eckbert several weeks ago. I can only hope that his plan works. Athelstan wrote to me several weeks ago. I did not answer him back because I did not know that I could fully trust the envoys that were sent to Wessex, I can only hope that Athelstan did not take my nonresponse as a disinterest in helping him and Ragnar.”  
“I hope that Athelstan’s plan works.” Said Hvitserk. Bjorn nodded.  
“If Athelstan and Ragnar’s plan works, I will help Ragnar get back to Kattegat. Can the both of you stay here until Ragnar and Athelstan arrive?”  
“Yes, it would be no problem, the men seem to enjoy the city of Paris, our warriors and the villagers seem to get along well, they have even taken time to show our warriors some of their customs and language. King Charles seems to like talking with the men and he has talked with us about possibly giving us land for a new settlement in a region called Flanders.” Said Bjorn.  
“Flanders is not a bad region, plenty of fertile land for farming, still sparsely populated. A young man could earn his own way there, find some land, build a house, start a farm, find a wife, start a family and make a good start without having to struggle like we did in Kattegat.”  
“That was father’s plan all along.” Said Bjorn.  
“Often a man must go where he is fated.” Said Hvitserk.  
“That is true young Hvitserk.” Said Rollo. “Don’t worry about Ragnar, if he and Athelstan can get here, I will help them get back to Kattegat.” Hvitserk looked visibly relieved. Bjorn and Rollo continued to talk about what to do when Ragnar came to Paris. 

Early evening in Kattegat

The three women looked in on Prince Ivar who was awake and talking to his brothers. Queen Aslaug invited the young women into the room. Elisef looked up and greeted the women.  
“How is Prince Ivar doing this evening?” asked Widow Edmunds.  
“He is doing a little better, he does not shiver as much now, and he is not in pain, but he still has a fever.” Said Elisef as she cleaned up around Ivar’s bed. Queen Aslaug spoke.  
“Ivar just needed to be home, I think he will get better in the days ahead. Thank you again for everything that you have done for him. Ivar looked over at the women.  
“You and Prince Ivar are both welcome. We were sent here to attend to him, we are not allowed to leave him until springtime.” Said Widow Edmunds. Queen Aslaug thought about what the woman had said, she would have to talk with her about this later on.  
“So how did you get so lucky to get personal attendants until next spring little brother, I know it wasn’t because of your charming personality?” asked Ubbe whistling. Ivar rolled his eyes at his brother. Sigurd spoke next.  
“Maybe I should go to England and throw myself at the mercy of a king, who knows, maybe I can come back to Kattegat with a whole village of women!” said Sigurd who often bragged about his self-worth with regard to women. Ivar looked over at Sigurd.  
“The only place that you should throw yourself is into a deep, deep well that you can never get out of again! Besides, Ragnar and I never encountered a village of blind, deaf, dumb and crazy women in Wessex, so there go your chances of having a village full of women!” said Ivar. Everyone in the room laughed at the two young men. Sigurd, embarrassed, got up and left his brother’s room. Queen Aslaug left the room with Prince Ubbe. Widow Edmunds, Bethany and Enid sat down and started talking with Elisef about Prince Ivar’s condition. Ivar looked over and stared intently at both girls, the girls noticed Ivar staring at them, they both tried to distract themselves by listening to Elisef’s every word, but they could still feel the intensity of Ivar’s stare. Despite his earlier interactions with the two young women, Ivar actually thought that the two girls were very pretty. The two young women did not pay much attention to him, probably because he had been unkind to them, Ivar decided that he wanted to get to know both of the young women before they had to leave in the springtime.

 

Wednesday Morning  
Kingdom of Wessex Early  
Morning before sunrise

Athelstan got up from his bed. He got dressed quickly, gathered his belongings and placed them by his door. He opened his door, grabbed his bags and got ready to go to Ragnar’s room. He was almost at the door when he noticed that he was being followed. He turned around and got the shock of his life.  
“Shhhhhhh! Priest.” Said Princess Kwenthrith as she grabbed Athelstan’s arm and pulled him into a corner.  
“Do you want to get us caught? Asked Princess Kwenthrith.  
“Get us caught, what are you talking about?” asked Athelstan. Kwenthrith gave him a shy smile.  
“I know that you are planning to help Ragnar escape this morning.” Athelstan was surprised at what she was telling him.  
“Don’t worry, I won’t tell, I know that you and Ragnar are quite fond of each other. I am fond of Ragnar too, he and I have had some great times together in times past, we have even sneaked a few liaisons here in the past few weeks too, but never mind about that, I know that you want to help Ragnar and I want to help you too. I was with King Eckbert and self-righteous Princess Athelwulf last night, I slipped some herbs in their wine, they won’t be awake for hours, by then you will be long gone. If I were you, I would hurry, make haste.” Said Princess Kwenthrith as she pulled Athelstan toward her for a long, lingering kiss which he returned in equal measure. She released him, as he released her, she handed him her rosary of garnet stones and wished him the best of luck. He thanked her and hugged her to him again.  
“Go, now go!” she said as she ran back toward the King’s quarters. Athelstan walked toward Ragnar’s room, he grabbed the key and opened the door to his quarters.  
“Good morning sunshine.” Whispered Ragnar. Athelstan smiled at him, he got the keys to release Ragnar from his chains and cage, he then quickly pushed him toward the door. The two guards that were to help him, walked the two men toward the king’s bath house. The four of them walked into the bath house as to not raise suspicion, then they quickly ran outside through a small, almost hidden side door not far from the beach. The men met the young guard from Mercia, the young man Jacob had a young woman with him whom he introduced as his wife Constance. The six people walked to the shore and Ragnar was given a change of clothes, he walked to the first ship and got into a large crate and was boarded up by the two guards. The other guard and the woman hid in the bushes near the ships. Soon the crew of the French ships came down and loaded the last of the crates on board the ship. As daylight emerged, the three men and young woman walked out of the forest dressed in monk’s robes. They came over to talk with Athelstan, where they all talked briefly and boarded the ship. The two ships were loaded and soon set sail out into the open sea. Ragnar’s heart finally started beating a normal rhythm after the ship was a good distance away from the shores of Wessex hours later. He watched through the openings in the boards of the crate as Wessex became a distance and unpleasant memory, he fell into a peaceful sleep. 

It was midafternoon by the time the ship’s crew discovered who was on the ship with them. The crew of Frenchmen were surprised, but they were not afraid of the people when Athelstan explained who the people were. They were surprised about being on the ship with Rollo’s brother. The men came over to greet Ragnar and speak to him. He did not understand what was being said to him because they were speaking French. Athelstan told Ragnar what they were saying to him. After the Frenchmen went back to attend their duties on the ship, Ragnar and Athelstan sat down to talk.  
“Athelstan, I would just like to thank you for helping me, I owe my life to you yet again!” Ragnar pulled the young man toward him and kissed the top of his head.  
“Ragnar, the debt has been paid many times over. You saved my life many years ago. Remember Rollo had planned to kill me at the monastery, you stepped in and saved me.”  
“I would never have let him kill you, it was something about you that let me know that you were going to be an important part of my life in the future. It is like the gods spoke to me and told me this thing.”  
“Ragnar when I tell you that you saved my life, I also mean that you saved me from a life that would only be centered around the monastery. I didn’t choose that life, that life chose me, I had often wondered what it would be like to live another life, like a farmer, a blacksmith or being a part of a ship’s crew seeing new places and meeting new people, I had even thought about marriage and a family too. I did not want to just walk away from the brothers because they took me in when I had no one after my parents and siblings had died. I decided to make the best of my lot.” Athelstan thought about his time with Ragnar.  
“If we do get back to Kattegat, we will be staying there in the meantime, no more big adventures for a while.” Athelstan nodded his head in agreement. Ragnar asked the young guards about their plans. The two young men Tryvegg and Thorbjorn told him that they would go back to Kattegat with the two of them, the young guard Jacob from Mercia and his wife Constance said that he would be willing to go where everyone else went. The group discussed their plans as they sailed toward Paris. 

Wessex

“Wake up father, Ragnar Lothbrok has escaped, he is no where to be found! Athelstan is missing too!” exclaimed Prince Athelwulf as he came into his father’s room. Princess Kwenthrith who was sleeping next door walked over to the room.  
“What is going on over here, you are making enough noise to wake the dead!”  
“Ragnar Lothbrok and his priest Athelstan are missing, you wouldn’t happen to know anything about that would you?”  
“No, I would not.” Prince Athelwulf looked back over to his father who had yet to recover from the night before.  
“Well, what do you think happened?”  
“I think that Athelstan helped Ragnar escape. We need to form a search party and look for them, he needs to be brought back to face justice, Athelstan can be tried for treason, surely he will hang for what he has done.” King Eckbert looked at his son, other than the fact that he had promised King Aelle that he would send Ragnar to him, he really didn’t care what became of Ragnar Lothbrok or Athelstan. To be honest, he was happy to be rid of them both. He had a silent admiration of Ragnar, a man that had once been a farmer, then an earl and later a king. He also feared Ragnar too. The man was ambitious and corrupt, he had even admitted this, the two men mirrored each other greatly. King Eckbert was also jealous of Ragnar, they had both loved a woman neither of them had the desire to truly give their heart to…Lagertha. Lagertha was true greatness, strength and beauty built into one woman. Weak men like Ragnar and Eckbert could never truly possess her. Weak men like he and Ragnar always chose personal ambition over love only to find themselves alone yet again. King Eckbert reasoned that he could have made Lagertha his wife, but would she have the courage to love another man like Ragnar even if he was a king, King Eckbert realized that there were battles that she didn’t even have the courage to engage in, loving him was one of them. He could not deny her words when she told him that he could only love himself. He always had and always would. He was a selfish man. That is why he had denied Athelstan the right to return to Kattegat years ago. This was also the reason that he had taken his own son’s wife to bed behind his son’s back. King Eckbert had also sent his former lover Guinevere away too simply because he had caught Bishop Heahmund staring at her one day. King Eckbert lay back down in his bed. He would speak with his son at a later time about Ragnar and Athelstan, right now he just wanted to lie down and forget the whole matter. 

Kattegat

Widow Edmunds, Enid and Bethany had been in Kattegat for three days. They had stayed inside The Great Hall because a very cold rain had came in from the North the evening that they had came to Kattegat. The ships crew worried about leaving day after tomorrow, the crew was anxious to get back to Wessex. The ships’ crew talked with Thorstein and other men about the weather and travel. The men sat in the back of the hall talking, drinking and eating roast pork. The three women went to help in the kitchen. Queen Aslaug called the women to her. The three women bowed before her, Queen Aslaug was honored and flattered by the attention.  
“Good evening Widow Edmunds, Enid, Bethany, how are you doing this evening? I hope this evening finds you well.”  
“Yes, Queen Aslaug, it does.” Queen Aslaug looked at the three young women.  
“Are you three busy right now, if not, I would like it if the three of you would come and weave with me, I would enjoy your company.” The three women looked at each other as they followed Queen Aslaug to her room at the back of the hall. The queen opened the door. The room was enormous. The room had two looms sat up in the corner of the large room. Two pieces of cloth had been started on each loom.  
“Come and sit with me, Widow Edmunds, the girls can use the loom over there.” The two girls sat down by the loom and started picking out different threads. Queen Aslaug and Widow Edmunds did likewise. The group of women had worked for twenty minutes before Queen Aslaug spoke.  
“If I may ask, exactly where are you from in England?”  
“I am from Wessex, the two young women are from Northumbria.”  
“I have heard much about England, but I have never traveled there myself, one day I should like to go there. I have not traveled much, I was always busy with the children and running The Great Hall. Tell me this, why did King Eckbert send you here to the north for so long, did you lose favor with him?” asked Aslaug, as she looked at Widow Edmunds. The young woman sat and explained her, and the girls plight to Queen Aslaug who listened intently at every word.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ragnar and Athelstan arrive in Paris to meet with Rollo. Ivar continues to recover and he starts to take interest in his surroundings. Aslaug is distraught about Ragnar's fate. Lagertha receives news about Ragnar which makes think back to the early days of their relationship.

Chapter 2   
Tuesday Evening   
Paris

Ragnar Lothbrok and Athelstan looked nervous as their ship approached the shores of Paris. Ragnar carefully noticed that the city looked the same as it had the last time he was here, except there were more fortifications now and the city was once again a busy place. Today Paris was quite warm, despite the lateness of the evening, it was getting dark when the group arrived. Francia was still a lovely city. The two men discussed their arrival and the plans that they had. The young guards looked at the large, beautiful city with awe.   
The arrival of the ships upon Frankish shores reminded Ragnar of the last time that he was here. He had come back to the shores of Paris to find that his brother Rollo had betrayed him, he and his warriors had fought Rollo’s army and paid a heavy price. Bjorn, Lagertha and Halfdan, King Harald’s brother were injured, many of his warriors had been killed that day, along with numerous ships being destroyed. Everyone had blamed him, and he had left Kattegat not long after his arrival back to the north. He was a man that had lost favor with his people and his gods. Many thoughts weighed heavily on Ragnar’s mind as the boats docked, he and the others prepared to leave the boat. As soon as he got off the boat, several armed guards surrounded him and Athelstan, the men were forced to put their hands up. The red bearded guard asked, “Are there more that came with you?” Athelstan nodded, and Ragnar spoke,  
“Yes, these young people are with me.” He stated as the small group was gathered up and marched to an enclosed area around the vast estate. It was getting dark and the group wondered where they were being led to. It was getting cooler now, it was later in the evening and the group was tired, they wanted to eat and rest before deciding their next move.   
The guards marched the group to an old, stone building situated faraway from the castle in which Rollo, Gisla and their family stayed. The group had walked for what seemed like a quarter hour before they reached the building, the guard took a key and opened the building, the group followed him down the hall to a set of double doors. Ragnar and the group observed light and warmth from behind the door. The guards opened the door. Behind the door was a vast, well-lit room with giant fireplaces situated on the left and right sides of the room. The overhead lights and the fireplace gave the room a golden glow. In the middle of the room, was a giant table with a meal fit for a king. The room smelled magnificent. The feast laid out on the table was like non-other seen by the group before. The room smelled of roasted meat and pastries. Ragnar, Athelstan and the group were escorted to an area to settle in and unpack before eating. The rooms contained two beds and a wash basin to wash one’s hands. The group was allowed to bathe and change clothing before the meal. They were led back to the table and were told to stand, Ragnar and Athelstan looked over at one another before the double doors were opened and a tall bearded man walked in. He was dressed in fine clothing and carried himself in a very regal manner. He looked over at the small group. The group bowed at the man before them, Ragnar spoke, “Rollo, Duke of Normandy.” The tall man smiled and walked over to the group, he motioned for them to sit down.  
“King Ragnar, brother, it has been a long time.” said Rollo as he looked over at his brother who seemed in awe of his older brother and his accomplishments.   
“I see that you have done well for yourself, congratulations brother.” Said Ragnar with slight resentment in his voice. Rollo picking up on the tone of Ragnar’s voice stated, “I would not be the man that I am now had it not been for your vision brother. Is it so wrong that I should desire greatness for myself as you did?” Said Rollo as he looked to the double doors to see his nephews Bjorn and Hvitserk walk into the room, Hvitserk was followed by a petite dark-haired girl. Ragnar stood up and hugged the two young men.  
“Father, I thought that I would never see you again!” said Bjorn as he embraced the older man, Hvitserk walked over to his father as Bjorn released him.  
“Hello father.” Said Hvitserk as he hugged his father. “Where is Ivar?” asked Bjorn.  
“I hope that he is safely back in Kattegat, King Ecbert sent him back a week ago, he was sick when he left Wessex, I can only hope that he is home and feeling better.” Said Ragnar as he walked the two young men over to introduce them to the group at the table. Rollo cleared his throat, “Enough with the formalities, let’s eat, I am very hungry.” Rollo motioned for the servants to start serving the food. Rollo said that he would help Ragnar and his group get back to Kattegat. After dinner, Rollo would meet with the men to discuss the group’s departure for Kattegat.

 

Wednesday Evening  
Kattegat

Widow Edmunds, Enid and Bethany were still getting acquainted with their new surroundings. The young women had been helping Aslaug attend Ivar, they also helped her around The Great Hall when needed. The women tried to avoid Ivar and his wrath as much as possible. Despite his moodiness and anger, the young man’s condition had started to improve, he had started sitting up now and had walked with his crutches, he was regaining his strength fast. Aslaug had had a busy day, she had been weaving most of the morning, cleaning her quarters and she had gone to the market to get some cooking spices. She tried to keep from thinking about Ragnar and his fate. Maybe Ragnar was still alive and could escape King Eckbert and find a way to come home. Aslaug was angry and sad that Ragnar had defied her and went to England anyway. She could not help Ragnar now, she did not know what to do. After getting a cup of mead and a slice of fresh bread, she sat down and started eating, she looked up and saw Thorstein walk through the door with Floki and Helga.   
“Good evening, Aslaug.” Said Floki as he and Helga sat down in front of her. Thorstein sat on the other side of Floki.   
“Good evening, Helga, Floki, Thorstein, how are things going?”   
“Things are going nicely, it was quite warm today considering the time of year it is, Floki and I decided to come into town for a few days.”  
“Where is Tanaruz?”  
“She is visiting with our Angrbroda, Einar and Baby Freydis. She wanted to get away for a while. Several boys have come by to ask Floki for her hand in marriage. Most of the village boys are fascinated with her.”  
“She is a beautiful young woman, she is an uncommon beauty in these parts.”  
“Yes, and that is why I must choose her husband carefully, she is an uncommon girl and she must have an uncommon mate too, hee, hee, hee!” giggled Floki as he came around to get some mead. Helga and Floki’s daughter Angrbroda had married over a year ago and she had recently had a baby. Aslaug looked over at Thorstein.   
“If you are looking for Gyda and Guthrum, they are with Ubbe and Margrethe, Ubbe said he would take them to your mother’s house tonight.”  
“Oh, yes, I know, Ubbe told me earlier, actually, I had come over to see Widow Edmunds.” Aslaug giggled and grinned at Thorstein.   
“She is with the girls, they had been out at the market earlier, I think they came back about an hour ago, I will summon one of the slaves to get her.” Aslaug called a young girl over and told her to find Widow Edmunds, a few minutes later, the woman appeared.   
“Yes, Queen Aslaug.”  
“You have a guest…” both women smiled at the same time.  
“Hello Widow Edmunds, how are you tonight?”   
“I am well, and yourself?”  
“Well indeed. I had come by to ask you if you would like to eat dinner with me this evening. I live a few houses from The Great Hall, it would only be a little distance.”  
“ I have to stay at The Great Hall and attend Prince Ivar and watch the girls, I am sorry Thorstein.”  
“Widow Edmunds, you can eat dinner with Thorstein if you like, the girls and I can attend Ivar and as far as the girls go, they are in good hands here at the hall. Go ahead and enjoy yourself, you haven’t allowed yourself much free time since you got here, we will be okay.” Widow Edmunds thought about what Aslaug had said, she finally told Thorstein okay.   
“Just let me go and tell the girls that I will be out for a while.”   
“Widow Edmunds, just go, I will tell the girls where you are. Widow Edmunds nervously nodded, Floki and Thorstein laughed as Widow Edmunds was handed her cloak by one of the servants, Thorstein helped her put it on, she thanked him as she got ready to walk out of the door. Enid and Bethany looked as Widow Edmunds prepared to leave.   
“Girls, I have been invited out this evening, be on your best behavior at all times and mind your manners please.” The girls assured her that they would. The couple bid everyone goodbye. Enid picked up the tray on the table before she and Bethany continued on their way. The young women were going to Ivar’s room to give him the Rosehip Tea that Elisef had recommended that he drink twice daily until his cough and congestion went away, the tea would also help take away some of the pain in his legs. The girls knocked on Ivar’s door, a voice told the girls to come in. The girls obeyed. Ivar sneered at the girls.  
“It would be the two of you, I don’t remember saying anything about desiring any Christian company tonight.” Said Ivar in a voice thick with sarcasm. The girls took deep breaths and sat down. Sigurd told the girls to ignore Ivar, who then rolled his eyes at Sigurd.  
“You little crippled bastard, you should be glad anyone at all comes to see you, much less two pretty Christian girls!” said Floki, gesticulating wildly in the air. Ivar threw a pillow at the tall man, who ducked the pillow. Floki went over to help Sigurd help Ivar stand and walk over to his chair by the fire place. Enid went to hand Ivar the cup of tea. Enid’s hand touched Ivar’s hand as she placed the cup in his hand. He looked up at her and told her “thank-you”. Enid nodded “you are welcome” to Ivar. The young man locked eyes with the young woman who quickly turned and walked over to a chair and sat down beside Bethany. Sigurd and Floki sat on Sigurd’s bed and started talking. Ivar sat silently looking into the fire, he sat and thought about Enid and Bethany, especially Enid. The young woman was very pretty, she had dark hair and blue eyes, just as he did, she was average height and rather on the skinny side, but with a nice shape. Enid was shorter with light blonde hair and grey eyes, she was not as skinny as Enid and she had an ample bosom, a round bottom and hips like Sigurd liked, Ivar laughed. Both of the girls were quiet. Ivar had noticed that the young women smelled nice too, they smelled like roses and spices. Red roses, like the ones Aslaug had tried to grow before he had cut the blossoms off of her roses. That was one of the few times that Ivar had ever seen Aslaug mad at him. The thought made him laugh again.   
“What are you laughing about over there?” Inquired Floki.  
“I was laughing about a certain skinny, bald ship builder that stays on the outskirts of Kattegat.” Sigurd summoned Bethany to follow him.  
“Let’s go and eat dinner, does anyone else want to eat dinner, I will tell the slaves to prepare your plates.” Said Sigurd. Ivar motioned for Enid to hand him his crutches.   
“Yes, tell the slaves to prepare some dinner, we will be right out, said Ivar as he motioned for Enid to follow, he and Floki to the dining area. Sigurd had sat down beside Bethany, he got up to pull Ivar’s chair out for him, Ivar looked at Sigurd suspiciously, Sigurd stared him down as he sat down, and Sigurd pushed his chair to the table for him and sat back down. Enid decided to sit by Ivar, in case he needed something, today was the first day Ivar had been well enough to come to the dining area to eat. The slaves brought over Grilled Salmon and edible sea greens, boiled potatoes seasoned with onion. A large pitcher of mead was placed on the table along with ale. Floki told the young people that he was going to sit with Helga and Aslaug. Helga was already sitting with Aslaug. Aslaug had a plate of food in front of her that she had barely touched.   
“Aslaug, you need to eat, you have barely touched that plate at all.” Aslaug looked over at Helga and Floki.  
“I had another vision about Ragnar last night, I dreamed that Ragnar was to be killed soon. The men that brought Ivar back discussed Ragnar’s fate with Thorstein and I before they sailed back to England, they said that it was almost certain that Ragnar would be killed by King Aelle, King Eckbert had sent Ragnar to King Aelle to be judged. King Aelle and Ragnar have been enemies for years. I asked Ivar if Ragnar had told him anything about being sent to King Aelle, Ivar told me that King Eckbert was sending him to King Aelle to a certain death, nothing else could be done…” said Aslaug with tears in her eyes. Helga came over to console Aslaug.   
“Aslaug, maybe the dream was wrong, remember when you thought that Ivar and Ragnar’s ship had sank and they drowned, they both survived, Ivar came back to you! Don’t lose hope.” Floki added,  
“Ragnar maybe able to get his way out of this, you never know about Ragnar, he is a very clever man, if anyone can get out of this, it is him.” Aslaug continued to cry and nodded her head.  
“Floki, I certainly hope so, if Ragnar dies, I don’t know what I will do.” Said Aslaug as she excused herself. Floki and Helga looked over at Ivar and Sigurd as Aslaug left the table to go to her room.  
“Something has upset mother.” Said Ivar as he looked over at Sigurd.   
“She is probably thinking about Ragnar again, why, I don’t know.”  
“Probably because he is her husband and our father!”  
“Yes, he is her husband that walked out on her and our father that walked out on us as small boys. At least you had Aslaug, I never did.” Ivar glared at Sigurd.  
“Jealous?”   
“Not hardly!” sneered Sigurd. Bethany and Enid looked at the two young brothers wondering what they should do. The brothers looked at the two young women who silently wondered what was going on with the two of them. Not wanting to make a bad impression on the girls, Ivar and Sigurd decided to stop arguing. Sigurd spoke first.   
“Some young people from another village arrived this morning, we will be playing music a little later this evening, would you like to join us? If you don’t play music, you can watch us play. Suggested Sigurd. The girls looked at one another not sure what to say.  
“You girls can go, I plan to go too, I just watch, hopefully that Norwegian girl Ingrida will be there, she is quite pretty, she came and sang to me last time she was here. Enid was slightly upset when she heard Ivar speak of a girl named Ingrida, she didn’t exactly know why since she had no ties to Ivar, besides she didn’t like Ivar because he had made it known that he did not like Christians. Sigurd did not like Christians either, but he wasn’t as openly hostile to Christianity as Ivar or Floki. The young people got up and walked over to another part of The Great Hall in an area near the front door, soon another group of young people into The Great Hall and greeted them, they sat down and began playing music. Sigurd sang and played his guitar, Bethany smiled and clapped. Enid hummed along to the music, not sure of the words, Ivar looked over at her and laughed, the slaves brought mead and warm sweet potato bread over to the group. Ivar could see that Enid was having fun. He glanced over at her several times, she caught him staring at her more than once that night. 

Tuesday Night  
Wessex  
King Eckbert’s Estate

“Father, has there been any word from King Aelle about Ragnar Lothbrok’s escape?” asked Prince Athelwulf as he drank from his challis of wine.   
“No Athelwulf, there has not, I don’t expect there will be any word anytime soon. I know he will be greatly disappointed to hear that Ragnar will not be his to dispose of as he sees fit.” Princess Judith laughed.   
“Judith, none of this is funny, Ragnar Lothbrok, one of the greatest threats in our lifetime has escaped, his pet priest Athelstan helped him. If they are eventually caught, I will have them both crucified! Father, you should have let those priests finish what they started with that fornicating apostate Athelstan years ago!” yelled Athelwulf.  
“Lower your voice, Athelwulf, the boys will hear you!” Athelwulf had turned red in the face before he looked over to face Judith.  
“Just what would the boys hear anyway Judith, that their mother is a whore that sleep with the priest and their grandfather!” Judith looked startled.  
“Enough already!” yelled King Eckbert. “Must the two of you continue to rehash the same arguments time and time again! Seriously, there is enough blame and transgressions that took place under this roof that there is enough for all of us to claim, now is not the time or place to discuss such things. Sit down and eat, no more of this.” The young couple looked at King Eckbert as they once again settled down to eat.

Tuesday Evening   
Hedeby  
Lagertha’s Great Hall

Lagertha and Kalf sat in their chairs and listened as the skalds sang songs and recited poetry to the group. The skalds had come to the village last night to much fanfare. The small group of musicians and poets would be leaving in a few days, they had decided to stop at Lagertha’s village because they had remembered her hospitality and kindness toward them in the past. Hedeby was known as a village with strong and capable warriors that would fight to the death for their earl. Hedeby was also known as a village that treated visitors with good hospitality. The skalds were the delight of Lagertha and Kalf’s son and daughter, Hrolf and Solveig. The children had listened closely to the poems, songs and sagas of the North people, they especially like the ones that spoke of their mother Lagertha. The skalds had just finished a song when the doors of the hall opened. Kalf got up to go to the door and Lagertha followed. The couple recognized their guest at once, it was King Harald of Norway and several of his warriors. The man was greeted by Lagertha and invited to sit down. King Harald sat down at large table with Lagertha and Kalf. The servants brought over mead and asked did they want food, the men said “yes” and sipped their mead.   
“So, King Harald, what brings you this way at this time of the year, it is too early to think about the raiding season and you usually don’t come down this far unless there is something that you need…perhaps?” Lagertha had never like King Harald and only slightly liked his brother Halfdan. Lagertha, Kalf, and Harald tolerated one another for manpower on raids and little else. King Harald looked at Lagertha with apprehension, Kalf looked off in another direction. Harald finally spoke.   
“Lagertha, I have traveled to Hedeby to give you some news that I received from a traveler from the south that came to trade in my village. He received the news when he was in England. Lagertha and Kalf looked for King Harald to continue.  
“The trader told me that Ragnar Lothbrok was dead, killed at the hands of King Aelle. He had been captured and sent to King Aelle by King Eckbert.” Lagertha was shocked by the news as was Kalf. The two looked at one another.   
“When was he killed?”  
“He was sent to King Aelle a while ago. This trader left England around the time Ragnar’s fate was being announced.”  
“What of his sons? Where they with him, do they know?”  
“They only mentioned one son, Ivar, the crippled boy, they say that he was sick, and he was sent back to his mother, they didn’t know of his fate. Do Ragnar’s other sons know of Ragnar’s fate?” inquired Harald.  
“If Ragnar’s sons knew for certain that their father was dead, there would be no one left alive on this earth, they would have declared war on the entire world by now.” Laughed Kalf as he looked at Harald who laughed too. Lagertha rolled her eyes at Kalf. Harald studied Lagertha, gauging her reaction to the news that he had just given her. Lagertha’s mind went immediately to Aslaug, she wondered how Aslaug had reacted when she heard of Ragnar’s death.  
“Warriors from Ragnar’s village said that only Ivar went with Ragnar, Bjorn, Hvitserk and your brother Halfdan as you know went back to the Mediterranean, somewhere called Italia, last I heard they were still there. Ubba’s wife was expecting a baby, he and Sigurd stayed behind to help Aslaug mind the village. Harald sighed.   
“I plan to travel to give Aslaug this news as soon as possible. I was wondering, could I impose on your hospitality for a few days, I am quite tired from my travels, I have only brought two ships with a few men on each, I have also brought some provisions, I did not wish to arrive empty handed.”  
“Where is Astrid and Elisif, did they not come with you this time?” asked Lagertha curious.  
“No, they are home with the children, both send you and your household kind regards, all of the children keep both of my wives very busy.” said Harald smiling.  
“After your meal, I will have the slaves show you to your quarters for the night. Your men can stay in the barn near the hall with the slaves, it is quite warm and clean there.” Harald nodded. Lagertha got up and walked away from the table as Kalf and Harald continued to talk.

Wednesday  
Paris 

At noon, Rollo went to speak to his brother, nephews and others in Ragnar’s group about traveling back to the north. So far, his father-in-law, King Charles and his wife Gisla did not know about Ragnar being in Paris and Rollo did not plan to tell them. Rollo decided to meet his brother in complete secrecy. The guards on the estate were sworn to secrecy at the point of a sword, Rollo threatened to kill anyone that spoke of Ragnar. None of the guards doubted Rollo or his threats. The envoys of King Charles have also been told not to speak of Ragnar or the others, to which they had all agreed.   
After he read Athelstan’s letter about Ragnar’s fate, he knew that he had to help Ragnar, he owed a great deal to his younger brother, he could never repay him. King Charles and Gisla was his family too, he had sworn to protect them, but Ragnar was blood, a tie not easily torn asunder no matter what happened. Rollo had tried to kill his brother once; his brother had forgiven him and spared his life. Years later, Rollo once again betrayed Ragnar for fame, glory and greatness. Rollo had been so torn that day, battling his brother and betraying his own brothers and sisters in the shield wall, but he had decided to walk out of Ragnar’s shadow and determine his own fate. Looking back now, he was glad that he did, if he had not made the choice that he had made, Ragnar might have been dead at the hands of King Aelle now. Too much to think about as Rollo raised his head and knocked at the door of the stone building. The doors swung open immediately and he was escorted down the hall to the double doors of a large room. The guards opened the doors and announced Rollo. Ragnar and his group stood at attention. Rollo motioned for the group to sit down. Bjorn and Hvitserk had also joined the small group as had Sinric. Hvitserk was holding a young woman’s hand.  
“Good afternoon everyone.” Said Rollo as his spoke to the group. The group greeted him.   
“How soon do you think that I can get home, I really miss Kattegat now.” Asked Ragnar. Rollo looked over at Ragnar.  
“Seriously, now you miss Kattegat after you miss a date with King Aelle’s snake pit?!” Athelstan laughed. Ragnar blushed and hung his head. Rollo put several papers in front of him on the table.   
“As you may well know by now, King Eckbert and King Aelle will be looking for you on land and on the high seas. I have heard King Aelle is worse than King Eckbert about such things. You will have to take another route back to Kattegat. Here is a map that you can look at, there have been ships from here that have been that far before. As you can see the route is not a direct route, it will take you some time to get back home.”  
“How long do you think it will take?” asked Bjorn as he came and sat down beside his father, Hvitserk sat by Ragnar.   
“I was told it could take a little over three weeks. Three weeks is how long they say it takes when it is springtime and the weather is good. It is late autumn now and it will get colder soon, the seas will not be merciful and kind to those traveling this time of year.” Said Rollo.   
“I cannot wait until spring, I cannot risk being discovered by your family, I do not want to put you at risk Rollo.”  
“Yes, I know, I plan to get you all out of here as soon as possible, I would not want Gisla and her father to find out about you being here.”  
“I am glad that you decided to help me, Thank-You Rollo.”   
“You are welcome, I am glad that I am in a position to help you. I received Athelstan’s letter several weeks ago, I did indeed want to help you, but I didn’t know how to provide further assistance to your cause, it was all on Athelstan to decide what to do. I could not do anything diplomatically on your part and I serious doubt Gisla or King Charles would have done anything either. I did not know what to do, send word back or just wait, I am glad that Athelstan did not take my silence as in disinterest in your cause.”  
“Well Duke Rollo, I figured that there were very few people that you could trust, I took it that you would help us, I had to take that chance.” Said Athelstan as he looked over at Rollo who nodded. Halfdan, King Harald’s brother was escorted into the room with a young, foreign looking girl with hazel eyes, he greeted the group.  
“I plan to get you out of here no later than Sunday. I will send five ships with your group, in case you run into trouble, the ships are in the final stages of being provisioned. If all goes well, you should be back in Kattegat by the end of November. Just know that you will be leaving with a few more people than you arrived with.” Laughed Rollo as he pointed to Halfdan, his girlfriend, Hvitserk and his wife. Ragnar looked around. Hvitserk spoke.   
“Father, I would like for you to meet Luitgarde, she is my wife. We got married a month ago.” The young man blushed as he explained his surprise marriage to his father. The young woman blushed and smiled.   
“Hvitserk was seeing this young woman for several weeks, one day her mother walked into the barn and found these two in a rather “compromising” position, her father marched her up here and demanded an immediate marriage, seeing as his daughter was “ruined” for future marriage prospects. Well, to keep this man from coming up here running Hvitserk through with a sword or worse, I suggested that the young people get married immediately, Hvitserk was not so sure, but I told him that he did spoil the gentleman’s daughter, the French do not look over things such as this. The marriage was arranged quickly. So far, Hvitserk and Luitgarde seem very happy with one another.” Said Rollo. Rollo thought back to a time many years ago that he found himself in an almost similar position.  
“In other words, he was thinking with the little head instead of the big one!” said Bjorn as he looked over at his younger brother who just shook his head. Ragnar turned around to look at the young woman who smiled at him. The girl was beautiful. She was a petite girl with light brown hair. She had brown eyes and she had a kind smile.  
“Hello, King Ragnar, how are you doing?” said the young woman as she held out her hand which was kissed by Ragnar.  
“I am doing well Luitgarde, it is nice to meet you, welcome to our family.” Said Ragnar. “Hvitserk you did well for yourself, she seems to be a very nice young woman.”  
“Luitgarde is from a good family, I am going to make sure that she will have a chance to say good-bye to her family before Sunday, I will arrange for them to meet us here at the estate. I will go and check how things are going with the ships and I will let you know something tomorrow afternoon at the latest. The group nodded their heads as Rollo got up to leave. 

Thursday Morning

Lagertha looked over at Kalf as the two of them proceeded to eat their morning meal. Lagertha was very sad as she thought back to what King Harald had told her about Ragnar’s death. Although she and Ragnar were no longer man and wife, she still loved Ragnar and would do so to her dying day, the two of them had been through so much together, Ragnar had been apart of her life since she was about fourteen years old. She thought back on she and Ragnar’s early life together. Lagertha thought about the young sixteen-year-old boy who walked by her house, smiled and waved at her when she was only fourteen years old. Lagertha, her father and brothers practiced together with others in their village. Ragnar’s brother Rollo had been friends with her oldest brother Sven. The two of them were often together and were old enough to go on raids. The nineteen-year old Rollo had attracted Lagertha’s attention early on. Ragnar had tried talking to Lagertha, but she paid him no mind. Ragnar would bring Lagertha flowers, combs for her hair and other small trinkets, she was not interested in him, she liked Rollo. The older Lothbrok brother liked the young shield maiden and had made his intentions known toward her. Lagertha, her brother Sven, Ragnar and Rollo practiced together and visited each other on their family’s farms. The year that Lagertha turned fifteen, she decided to ask her father could she raid in the Baltic Lands with him and her older brothers, Sven, Cnut and Egril. At first her father Arn told her no, but she pleaded and persisted until her relented. Her mother Thora, once a shield maiden, respected her decision to raid. In mid-May, the raiders set off to the Baltic Lands. The Baltic region was Earl Haroldsson’s favorite place to raid. The landscape was predictable, he knew about what he could expect there, the region had a sizable bit of wealth due to traders that traded goods along a specific route each spring. The traders had spices, brass, gold, silver, silks and other fine materials as well as slaves, often the traders were poorly armed and not a threat to the raiders. The raiders took the trader’s merchandise and took the people as slaves to be traded for profit. The raiders targeted villages with poor defenses and easy access back to the sea. After particularly profitable raid, the raiders were low on food and raided a village by the coast, they had underestimated the village in terms of size and strength. The entire village including children participated in the battle. Rollo and Earl Haroldsson were fighting with a group of farmers in a field as were the other warriors, Ragnar was alone, he had gotten isolated from the other warriors, he soon found himself surrounded by three men, two armed with clubs and one with a sword. Ragnar managed to fight off the two with clubs, but the warrior with the sword had Ragnar pinned to a wall. Lagertha saw Ragnar and ran over to him as the man was about to run Ragnar through. Lagertha hit the man in the back with a Dane Axe, the man fell forward a few feet from Ragnar who had been struck by one of the men holding clubs. Lagertha pulled out her knife and plunged it into the shorter man holding the club as Ragnar pushed his sword into the bigger man beside him. The two young warriors sat down beside each other. Ragnar looked over at the girl beside him.  
“Thank you, you saved my life today, if it were not for you, I would be a dead man!” said Ragnar between breathes. Lagertha nodded as Ragnar grabbed her hand and pulled her up so that they could go and join the others. As soon as Lagertha walked over to the others, she immediately walked into Rollo’s arms much to Ragnar’s disappointment. The raiders gathered salted meats, produce and fruit, and left the area to go back to their ships within hours of the battle. Ragnar got on the ship and sat down near the back of the ship, Lagertha was in Rollo’s arms, but she often glanced his way. Ragnar was determined to one day make the young shield maiden his.   
The next year Rollo went on the raids to the Baltics without Ragnar because Ragnar was needed at home to help on the farm. Ragnar’s father Sigurd had to farm his brother’s land because his brother Kalf had died the previous winter from an infection that had taken hold in his leg. Sigurd’s wife and three daughters did what they could on the land, but they would still need help. Sigurd was also preparing a plot of land for Rollo the young man would soon need to find a wife and start a family. Everyone expected Rollo would ask for Lagertha’s hand in marriage since the two of them were rather close. One day after Rollo had returned an early season raid, he had decided to go and visit a cousin in a nearby village for two weeks, he had told Lagertha to check on his place while he was gone, she agreed. Ragnar was on his way to Floki’s house early one morning to visit when he noticed that Lagertha was at his brother Rollo’s house, he decided to stop in and tell the young woman Hello. He had plan to only briefly stop by because the sky threatened a storm soon, he would have to hurry. Ragnar walked over to the young girl.   
“Hello Lagertha, how are you doing today? I have not seen you in a while.” Lagertha smiled and looked over at him.”  
“Hello Ragnar, how are you?”   
“I am doing fine, I was just wondering what you were doing at Rollo’s house?”  
“Rollo went to visit your cousin Helgi in Hedeby, he will be gone a while, he told me to check on his place while he was gone.” Said the young girl as Ragnar looked at her. The two young people heard a clap of thunder in the distance and Lagertha invited him inside of the house.   
“A storm is coming, I had planned to check on Rollo’s house and then go to Freydis’s house, later.” Stated Lagertha as she looked out of the window at the rain as it poured down.  
“I was on my way to Floki’s house, dad let me go for a few days since I have been working from sun up to sundown on the farm.” The two young people sat down at the table across from one another, the storm had gotten worse. Lagertha had brought along some cheese, bread and apples that she wanted to eat.   
“Would you like something to eat Ragnar, I have some food that we can share.” She said as she laid the food out on the table. Ragnar looked over and decided to take her up on her offer.   
“Thank you, I don’t have much to offer in return however, I only brought some dried beef and some pears.”   
“That will be okay. I have enough for the both of us.” The two ate the food as the storm continued. After the meal, house was cooler, the rain continued, and the two young people realized that they would not be going anywhere soon. Lagertha found several candles and lit them while Ragnar found Rollo’s hnefatafl game, he and Lagertha played for hours, he won most of the games and they laughed. Ragnar went and sat in front of the fireplace, Lagertha came over to him with two cups, she took one and he took one. Ragnar took a sip, it was mead, Rollo always kept mead and ale around. Lagertha had found the jug of mead and brought over to the fireplace. The two of them emptied the jug of mead and lay down in front of the fireplace. Ragnar turned to look at Lagertha, she was lying on her back staring at the ceiling with a smile on her face, curious, Ragnar asked, “What are you thinking about?” Lagertha giggled.   
“I am wondering what it would be like to kiss you Ragnar Lothbrok!” said Lagertha as she turned her head toward him. Ragnar blushed, never had he thought about having a chance such as this. Lagertha had always been Rollo’s girl, but Rollo had many girlfriends and wives too, so it was said. Lagertha rose up on her elbows and looked into Ragnar’s bright blue eyes. Ragnar leaned down and planted a gentle kiss on Lagertha’s lips, Lagertha reached up and pulled Ragnar’s head toward hers, he moaned as his tongue found its way into her mouth, she tasted of the sweet, honeyed mead that they had just had. Ragnar moved to slide on top of Lagertha as she continued to kiss him. Ragnar’s hands found their way under Lagertha’s shirt and he touched her breasts. Ragnar rolled Lagertha on top of him and she got up to take her clothing off as he slide out of his pants. Lagertha pulled his shirt over his head. Soon the two young people were naked in front of the fireplace. Lagertha got on top of Ragnar as he made himself comfortable on the furs. Ragnar reached up and pulled Lagertha toward him he kissed Lagertha’s lips as he reached for her breast, he cupped her breasts in his hands and moved forward to lick the tips of her breast with his tongue. Lagertha moaned as he began to suck her breasts. Ragnar shifted his body until he could slide himself inside Lagertha. He moaned as he moved inside Lagertha. The two of them found their rhythm as they continued to enjoy each other’s bodies. Ragnar increased his intensity as Lagertha shouted out in pleasure over and over again. Being with Ragnar was different than being with Rollo. Ragnar took his time to make sure that she was satisfied, he wasn’t rough with her, he treated her like a fragile flower, Ragnar let her know that he wanted her to enjoy their time together. Ragnar thrust into Lagertha one final time as he too reached his excitement. The two young lovers lay beside each other until they decided to take a bath together. The couple found a tub, they made a fire and heated water for the bath. Lagertha found fresh herbs and evergreens and placed them in the tub, they both sat down in the tub, they scrubbed and massaged each other’s bodies, afterward they lay back in the tub until the water got cold. Ragnar helped Lagertha out of the tub and the two of them dried each other off. They got dressed, cleaned up Rollo’s house, put the candles and fire out, they silently got ready to leave. The young couple left the house, Ragnar escorted Lagertha to her friend Freydis house before he set off to Floki’s house. 

Five weeks later, Ragnar saw Lagertha walking into the family’s barn, she looked worried and rather upset thought Ragnar as he saw Lagertha walk into the barn to speak with Rollo who was cleaning the barn to put down fresh hay. Ragnar continued to work until he heard his brother Rollo raise his voice, Ragnar walked over to the barn and listened outside.  
“Lagertha the answer is still no! I will not take responsibility for this child and no I will not marry you! I told you this before. I have already told you that I am not ready to settle down and start a family. You should have taken precaution, after all women get pregnant and not men!” Lagertha looked over at Rollo with tears in her eyes, pleading for him to understand the position that she was in.   
“Rollo, I did take precaution, but things like that don’t always work. I’m sorry Rollo, it just happened.”   
“Can’t you get some herbs from the midwife to take care of things like this?” suggested Rollo.  
“I could do that, but the herbs don’t always work either. Besides, I don’t want to get rid of this baby, I want to keep this baby, it is your baby too Rollo.” Said Lagertha in tears as she paced the floor.   
“Lagertha, I told you that I did not plan to stay here farming in Kattegat! There is a whole world out there to be explored and I want to see it! Maybe Ragnar can be content here on the farm the rest of his days but not me. I will be going to Norway to raid with Earl Rogenvold soon, I will be staying there for a while, I told you this months ago, was this so hard for you to understand Lagertha. I plan to leave at the end of the week, Sunday morning I will be gone.” He reached into his pocket and handed her two gold coins.   
“I am sorry Lagertha.” Said Rollo as he continued cleaning the barn. The young shield maiden walked out of the barn with tears in her eyes as she walked back to her parent’s farm. Ragnar surprised about what he had just heard walked out of the barn. Rollo had gotten Lagertha pregnant and now he was walking out on her, that was really despicable thought Ragnar as he sat down against the side of the barn. He felt sorry for Lagertha, soon she would have to tell her parents about the baby, people would cast a harsh judgement on Lagertha and she could lose favor with the gods. Ragnar thought back on the time that he and Lagertha had spent with one another over a month ago, maybe she wasn’t pregnant by Rollo, maybe the baby she carried was his child. He hoped that his brother would never find out about him and Lagertha being together. If this baby was his, he knew that he had to make things right for Lagertha and baby. Ragnar thought about this as he asked his father for a few days off to go town, his father said yes, and Ragnar set off toward town. Ragnar came back on a Sunday. He had gone to town to ask Earl Haroldsson for permission to farm a homestead in the same area that his father farmed, the two plots were right beside each other. Ragnar explained that he was going to be married soon and would need to set up a homestead. Earl Haroldsson granted Ragnar two plots of land to farm. The farm needed work but would be a good place for a young family to settle. The buildings on the farm were in good shape, Ragnar had some money put away, he planned to buy livestock and seed to start planting. He went home and discussed his plan with his father, his father reluctantly agreed with him. Rollo had left for Norway already. Ragnar decided to walk to Lagertha’s family’s farm and ask her father for her hand in marriage. Lagertha’s father Arn didn’t particularly care for Ragnar, but liked this brother Rollo instead, Rollo had a better reputation as a warrior and a hard worker on his family’s farm. Despite Rollo’s reputation of being with many women, Mr. Erickson still favored the young man, he figured Rollo would settle down after he got married. Rollo, the young warrior had no interest in getting married and settling down with anyone. Rollo had left already, he told Lagertha that he would not be back. Ragnar and Lagertha’s father talked, he said that he would let Lagertha make up her mind about Ragnar’s sudden proposal. Arn called his young daughter over to the table near the apple tree, the young girl was surprised to see Ragnar.   
“Daughter, it seems that Ragnar Lothbrok has something to ask you.” Stated her father, rather calmly. Ragnar looked over at the young girl. Both of them looked nervous.   
“Lagertha I have decided to set up a homestead and start a farm, I have decided to take a wife too, I was wondering would you allow me to ask for your father’s permission to marry you.” Asked Ragnar as he pulled a little gold ring with a shiny stone out of his pocket. He reached over to Lagertha for her hand.   
“Well, what do you think daughter?” asked Arn. Lagertha looked slowly over to both men. Lagertha had looked forward to spending her life with Rollo, she had wanted to make a life with him, but he did not love her. Lagertha liked Ragnar but she never saw herself spending her life with him, but she was with child, she would have to decide soon before everyone else found out what she already knew. What if by chance the child she carried was Ragnar’s child, Lagertha found herself in a difficult place, Ragnar was giving her chance to make things right, at least for the child. She looked to her father and then to Ragnar and told Ragnar “yes”.  
“I would be honored to be your wife Ragnar.” Said Lagertha as she looked at the ring on her finger. Her father seemed pleased, but he wondered why the young people felt such a sudden desire to get married. Arn, Lagertha and Ragnar walked into her house and told her mother and brothers the news. Her mother was very happy for her, she liked Ragnar and felt that he would be a fine addition to their family. Lagertha’s brothers congratulated her. Ragnar’s father and Lagertha’s father gave the couple livestock as a wedding gift to get them started on the farm.  
The wedding was held two weeks later, the happy couple quickly settled into domestic life. Bjorn was born in early March of the following year. Gyda was born the end of May the next year. The young family slowly built their farm over the years. The farm became prosperous and Ragnar expanded his land holdings. Ragnar’s farm had a reputation for producing good meats and fine produce. Lagertha was known for her cheeses and butter. The young couple managed to put money away and they eventually bought his uncle’s farm too. Five years later, Rollo came back to Kattegat, he saw that Ragnar and Lagertha had gotten married and started a family, he did not seem bothered by this. Rollo settled in Kattegat, eventually he and Ragnar started talking about going west. Lagertha thought back to how she and Ragnar’s life changed from that point. Ragnar’s ambition had finally got him killed she thought. Ragnar was always a risk taker, he took chances and thought about the cost later, he had always been willing to sacrifice so much she thought, just like his hero Odin.   
Lagertha looked over at Kalf and excused herself, she went back into her quarters and lay down thinking of Ragnar as she cried herself to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3 The Element of Surprise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rollo and Ragnar talk about the past. King Aelle and King Eckbert talk about what to do about the escape of Ragnar Lothbrok. Queen Aslaug and Widow Edmunds confide in each other, Bethany finds out about more about Sigurd's past, Ivar finds out more about Enid. Lagertha sees a ghost from her past. Aslaug and King get a big surprise.

Chapter 3 The Element of Surprise  
Saturday Afternoon  
Francia

Rollo walked to the room that Ragnar shared with Athelstan. There were some things that he wanted to talk to his brother about before he left the next day. Rollo planned to hold a dinner for his brother tonight, the dinner was to be held in secret and only a few people were invited. Rollo had been able to keep Ragnar’s presence at the estate a secret because Princess Gisla and King Charles had gone to a neighboring kingdom to talk with the officials there, they would be gone almost three weeks, long enough to get Ragnar on his way back to Kattegat. Tonight, he wanted to share the details of the upcoming journey with his brother and the others, but this afternoon he felt there were things that needed to be discussed between he and Ragnar. Rollo walked down the dark hallway until he reached the door of the small room, he knocked on the door, Ragnar walked to the door and let his brother in.  
“Good afternoon Rollo, how are you doing today?” asked Ragnar as he invited Rollo to take a seat. The two men sat down across from one another at a round table. Rollo sat down and poured himself some wine. Ragnar too poured himself some wine.  
“Merlot. This is a good wine, one of the finest that we make here. Our wines are known far and wide.”  
“I see why, this is quite good.” Replied Ragnar as he looked over at his brother. The two men sat and thought about what they would say. Rollo spoke first.  
“Have you enjoyed your time here Ragnar?”  
“Yes, I have enjoyed my time here with you, I was worried about how you would receive me once I got here, last time we saw each other, we did not part on good terms.”  
“Ragnar, I have decided to let by-gones, be by-gones, I no longer desire to fight you, nor do you have a desire to fight me, if you had, you would have come back to Francia years ago.” Ragnar nodded.  
“After such a sound defeat at the hands of my brother, I had no desire to even live much less come back and fight with you. After I got back to Kattegat, I left my kingdom, I wondered around for years. I had lost favor with my people and with the gods, I could not face my people, I could not face Aslaug and the boys either, so I left. While I was out there in the wilderness, I wondered just how my own brother could betray me twice.” Said Ragnar quietly as he looked over at Rollo with an icy glare. Rollo looked at Ragnar.  
“Ragnar, let me ask you something, if King Charles had offered you what he offered me, would you have turned it down? He offered me lands, an army, a title and a wife, far more that I could ever get raiding and fighting. All I had to do was defend his lands against The Northmen. If that meant defending these lands against you, then I was prepared to do that. I swore an oath, an oath I felt was worthy of me and my honor to swear allegiance to. Now I am a man of position and power, did you only think that you were the only one worthy of such Ragnar? Like Earl Haraldson said, you always put yourself the first among equals, Jarl Borg insinuated this as did King Horik, Floki always thought this, Lagertha always knew this, but no one knew these things better than I did!” said Rollo as he waited for what Ragnar would say. Ragnar was stunned at Rollo’s words. Ragnar knew Rollo felt like this all along. He knew his brother had harbored these thoughts for many years, but he had chosen to ignore Rollo’s feelings. The two young men had always been competitive at every level when they were young men. They had competed for their parent’s attentions, their father favored Rollo whereas their mother favored Ragnar. The young men had competed for the affections of Lagertha and other village girls, most girls favored Rollo because he was older and more mature than a young, skinny Ragnar who had no beard. In retrospect, Ragnar did not blame Rollo for what he did, if he had been Rollo, he would have walked out of the shadow of his brother as soon as he could. Ragnar realized what Rollo was saying, he knew that he had sacrificed many relationships and people to achieve fame, only to wind up alone.  
“Rollo, I realize that I sacrificed a lot to achieve my goals, I sacrificed the people around me, I took them for granted and now I am alone. I am sorry that I sacrificed you so many times to achieve my goals. I owe you an apology, I am sorry brother.” Rollo looked over at his brother and thought about what he had said.  
“Ragnar, despite what happened between us, you will never be alone, you and I will always be brothers. You have your sons, Aslaug, Floki, Helga…Lagertha.” The two men laughed.  
“Rollo, Lagertha was always your girl.”  
“She was until you slept with her behind my back.” Ragnar looked over at his brother with blank expression. “I heard that you and Lagertha got married and had a baby after I left. Lagertha told me that she was pregnant before I went to Norway, for a long time, I thought the baby was mine, but when I came back to Kattegat five years later, looking at Bjorn, I knew that he could not be mine.” Rollo sighed.  
“Well Rollo, I had to do what was right. Lagertha was pregnant, she really thought or just wished that the baby was yours, you rejected her and the baby, I thought that there could be a chance that the baby was mine, so I went to get some land and started a farm, then I went to ask for Lagertha’s hand in marriage, she accepted and that was that. I don’t suppose it matters now who fathered him, I am the only father Bjorn has ever known anyway.”  
“That is true, the past is the past. I have three children of my own now, William, Marcellus and Cesla, of whom I love dearly. I am happily married as well.”  
“I am happy for you Rollo, I hate that you turned your back on me, but I am glad that you have found your happiness, the gods have truly smiled on you, you have been tested and found great favor with them.”  
“Well Ragnar, if I had been back home in Kattegat tilling fields, I would not have been in a position to help you and you may have been food for King Aelle’s snakes already.” Both men laughed. The two men were interrupted by a knock at the door, Athelstan walked in with three small children, the two boys looked at Ragnar with great interest. The little girl ran over to her father and got into his lap. Rollo laughed at the little girl and gave her an apple.  
“Come over here children, there is someone that I want you to meet someone.” Rollo got up and walked over to his brother. “This is my brother, your uncle, King Ragnar Lothbrok, Ragnar, this are my children, William, Marcellus and Cesla. Ragnar looked at the small children with wonder. Rollo with children? Who would have thought that Rollo would be someone’s father when most of his life, he couldn’t even take care of himself, much less be responsible for a family? After coming back to Kattegat, Rollo had drifted between girlfriends for years, never committing to anyone. Ragnar was truly surprised at the change in his brother. The oldest child William looked just like Rollo had at that age. Marcellus and Cesla greatly favored their mother. The two young boys went over to shake Ragnar’s hand and he pulled to boys to him and gave them a hug, they reminded him of his sons when they were young boys. Cesla reluctantly walked forward to give Ragnar a hug, after she hugged him, she gave him the apple and tugged on his beard. He laughed as he teared up, the little girl’s playful manner reminded him of his beloved Gyda lost so many years ago in the plague that swept Kattegat.  
“Where did you come from?” asked a curious William.  
“I am from a place called Kattegat, it is to the north of here. Rollo sat down with Cesla in his lap. William and Marcellus sat down beside Ragnar. Athelstan excused himself to go back to the chapel.  
“Since we are all here, we don’t we sit and have a nice talk, you can get to know your uncle, he is only going to be here until tomorrow and then he has to leave.” The small group sat down and talked for the next few hours. 

 

 

Kattegat  
Saturday Evening  
Late October 

Bethany and Enid were sitting in The Great Hall sewing with Margrethe and several other young women in the village. The day was cooler that the days earlier in the week. Bethany and Enid dreaded the cold that was to come. It had already snowed once on Monday. The other young women in the group told Bethany and Enid that they would get used to the cold, although the young women doubted this. The group of young women continued sewing and talking. Ubbe, Ivar and Sigurd walked into the hall and sat down at one of the tables. The three young men looked over at the group of young women sewing in the corner. Margrethe looked over at the group and waved, Bethany and Enid looked back at the young men, but did not say anything. The young men started drinking mead and talking.  
“So, what do you think about those two English girls, I think they are hot!” said an excited Ubbe. Ivar glanced over at his brother.  
“They are okay I suppose, they seem to excite you and Sigurd more than anyone else.” Said Ivar as he casually sipped his mead. Sigurd spoke up.  
“I think that they are both pretty. I wouldn’t mind spending time with either of them.”  
“Sigurd the only time that you like to spend with females is with you on top of them.” Said Ubbe as he laughed at a now irate Sigurd. Ivar laughed.  
“Ivar, just what would you do with a girl except look at her.” Said Sigurd as he glared at Ivar.  
“You don’t know what I can do with a girl, just because I didn’t want to be with Margrethe doesn’t mean that I cannot please a woman.” Said an angry Ivar. Sigurd smirked as Ubbe nervously looked over at Margrethe who had looked over at the young men. The young men continued to talk until the door of the hall opened. A tall, angry, blonde female looked over to where the young men were seated. She walked over to the table with a small child about two years old with reddish-blonde hair.  
“Sigurd, why didn’t you pick Swanhild up earlier today, I waited for hours for you to pick her up and you never came by. The last time that I checked, this baby is your responsibility too!” Shouted the young woman. Sigurd tried to quiet the young woman down.  
“Lower your voice Brunhilda, everyone in the hall can hear you. I was planning to come pick Swanhild up, but I had some business to attend to today, it took longer than I expected. I am sorry.” Ubbe and Ivar tried to hide their laughter at the lie that Sigurd had so blatantly told. They both knew Sigurd had went to the next village over to visit another girl. Brunhilda and Sigurd had become a couple during a feast about two years ago, they had parted ways by the time Swanhild had been born. Sigurd provided support for the little girl and spent as much time with her as her mother allowed. Aslaug loved the little girl too, she had secretly wanted a little girl, but the midwife had told her that Ivar would be her last child, both mother and son had almost died during the delivery. Aslaug accepted this and cherished her sons, but she couldn’t help but desire a girl child. When Brunhilda went on raids, Aslaug kept the little girl when her other grandmother Signy could not. Brunhilda was a shieldmaiden and was two years older than Sigurd, recently she was betrothed to a warrior named Cnut. Sigurd picked the little girl up and put her in his arms. Ivar reached over and tickled the little girl’s belly. She laughed and reached for Ivar. Ubbe looked over at Ivar who was playing with his niece.  
“For a man that does not want children, you seem to be her favorite uncle.” Ivar grinned.  
“Only because Hvitserk is not here, she likes him more.” The young men resumed talking amongst themselves. Enid and Bethany had been watching the scene from the corner that they were sitting in. Bethany looked over at Margrethe. She wondered who the girl was who had brought Sigurd a small child. She was confused. Margrethe, knowing what Bethany was thinking spoke up.  
“I see Brunhilda is here, she probably wants Sigurd to keep Swanhild for a few days. Well, Queen Aslaug will be keeping Swanhild for a couple of days, Sigurd is out and about a lot. When he is around, he is a good father to Swanhild, despite his being so young.”  
“Sigurd has a child? Was he married?” inquired Enid.  
“Sigurd married? Sigurd keeps too many girlfriends to settle down with just one. They say he is just like his grandfather, his namesake Sigurd, Queen Aslaug’s father, they said that he was very popular with women too.” Bethany listened to Margrethe explain Sigurd’s situation. Bethany was surprised about Sigurd having a child. She was disappointed to find out about Sigurd’s former girlfriend. Bethany had spent the afternoon with Sigurd the day before, they had walked around the village and he had told her about the village, the people and places there, after they got back to the hall, she had told him more about England. He had never told her about his daughter.  
While Bethany and Sigurd were out, Enid and Ivar had decided to get along well enough to play chess, Enid had brought a board from England. Ivar was fascinated when Enid had told him about how King Eckbert had a life-sized chessboard which he and Prince Athelwulf played with real people. The two young people played several games. Aslaug watched as Ivar laughed as he played with Enid who joked with Ivar. Aslaug had always wanted Ivar to find a girl that he could spend time with. The young woman Enid often looked past Ivar’s foul moods and helped him anyway that she could. Despite Ivar’s often volatile modes, Enid found that she was looking forward to seeing Ivar and spending time with him each day now. Ivar sat and talked with her about Kattegat and the people that were there. He told her the history of the kingdom and how his father became an earl and then a king. Ivar decided to ask Enid about her life in England.  
“What was your life like in England, what happened to your parents?” Enid thought about how she would tell him about her life. She seldom discussed what had happened to her parents with anyone.  
“My parents died. My mother got sick one spring and she died. She wasn’t even sick that long. My father and King Aelle disagreed on a matter and King Aelle had him pushed into a pit of snakes, he died when I was six.” Ivar gasped at what Enid had told him.  
“Wasn’t your father his half-brother?”  
“Yes. King Aelle was mad at my father because he could not stop the Northmen and others from invading his lands. King Aelle left security to his lords and military men rather than getting out on the battlefield defending his own kingdom himself. After my father was killed, King Aelle had me and my mother sent away miles out of town, he didn’t want to be reminded of what he had done to my father. He sent a little money for us to live on, my mother did what she could to bring a little extra money so that we would have enough. She vowed to never forgive King Aelle for what he did to my father Lord Wigea. After my mother died, I was brought to the castle to live with King Aelle and his family, when his daughter Judith needed some attendants, he quickly volunteered Bethany and I to go. King Aelle did not want either of us around Northumbria.” Ivar was curious about Enid’s statement.  
“Why wouldn’t King Aelle want Bethany around, how was she a threat to him?”  
“Bethany is my cousin, but she is also King Aelle’s daughter. He had an affair with one of Queen Ealhswith’s attendants years ago. King Aelle sent Aunt Ava to the next village after he found out that she was having his child, he provided well for her. Bethany was sent to Princess Judith to be one of her attendants too, we arrived too late to be in service to Princess Judith but King Eckbert kept us on as help around the villa. Bethany’s mother got married and moved away. We were both staying at King Eckbert’s until we were sent here.” Ivar noticed the sadness in Enid’s voice as she related her story to him. Ivar seldom felt sympathy for anyone or anything, but Enid’s story touched some part of him. He wondered why King Aelle could be so cruel to his own niece and daughter. How could he just send them away and not wonder about their well-being. Ivar rationalized he and Sigurd argued often, but he could not imagine the two of them never seeing each other again. Ragnar had often said that King Aelle was an ill-tempered tyrant who sent others to fight his battles. King Aelle seemed to like to hide things that he did not want to deal with directly. Ivar decided that this bit of information might come in handy later if he ever had to battle the king directly. Enid, fighting back tears, excused herself and went into her room. Ivar sat silently at the table by himself and thought about what he and Enid had talked about. 

Sunday Morning  
Francia  
Rollo had seen his brother and the others off hours ago. The sun was shining, and the air was warm for this time of year. It was the end of October and would grow cold soon. Rollo hoped that Ragnar and his family would get home before the weather turned cold and stormy. The storms in the North Seas were harsh and many ships had been lost over the years. Rollo had sent five of his ships with Bjorn and his 4 ships, Rollo’s ships would follow Bjorn’s ships past the shores of England and return to France. There had been no word on King Eckbert or King Aelle looking for Ragnar and Athelstan, but it didn’t mean that they were not looking for him either. Rollo was happy that he was able to get Ragnar out of Francia before Princess Gisla and King Charles got back to Francia at the end of the week. Rollo had a small feast the night before for his brother and the other guests, Hvitserk’s bride Luitgarde was able to tell her family good-bye, her family had been sad about the possibility of never seeing her again. Hvitserk told her family that if possible, he would bring Luitgarde back to visit with their children next time. The group celebrated well into the night. Rollo had started to miss his brother and nephews already. He had enjoyed going to Spain and Italy with Bjorn and Hvitserk, he missed being a Viking, Gisla had had a fit when he had left her and the children. The children had asked him where he had been, he explained that he had went on a trip with his family, upon his return, Gisla had been slow to forgive him. Rollo decided that would be the last raid that he would ever participate in, things just didn’t feel the same. He didn’t need to raid for wealth anymore, he had a wife at home, and he didn’t desire to kill anyone that had not threatened him, then too, raids were just plain tiring now, Rollo had to admit to himself that he didn’t have the stamina that he used too. Rollo sat in his study and thought about his brother, Kattegat and surprisingly enough, Lagertha. Rollo thought that maybe, he should make a trip to Kattegat next spring and surprise a few people.

Sunday  
Kingdom of Wessex

King Aelle, Prince Athelwulf and King Eckbert sat at the dining table. The three men had finished their afternoon meal and had decided to discuss business. The main business at hand was Ragnar Lothbrok and how he had escaped. King Aelle looked over at King Eckbert.  
“Just how did Ragnar Lothbrok manage to escape, if he was locked up, how did he get out of his confines, if I may ask.” Asked King Aelle in a rather caustic and sarcastic manner which annoyed King Eckbert who just looked over at the two men. Prince Athelwulf spoke.  
“It would seem that the apostate priest, Athelstan helped Ragnar Lothbrok with his escape, Athelstan is missing as well as several guards. Don’t worry King Aelle, if and when they are all found, the punishment will be steep. I planned to have the entire group crucified.” King Eckbert spoke.  
“Ragnar Lothbrok is long gone, he is probably back in the northlands already, if not, he is hiding well. If Ragnar did escape and he is alive, we probably haven’t heard the last of him. Ragnar is a man that takes risks, albeit some of them quite foolish, I say we just sit here and wait on him, he will eventually be back.”  
“Father didn’t you say that Ragnar had a brother Rollo that was now The Duke of Normandy. He married King Charles daughter Gisla several years back, do you think that Ragnar would have went to him for help?”  
“It is not likely, from what I heard, Ragnar was soundly defeated by his brother Rollo, Ragnar barely escaped with his life, I doubt if he would have went to Rollo for anything.”  
Prince Athelwulf and King Aelle sat thought about what King Eckbert had said. King Aelle and King Eckbert had sent ships to look for Ragnar for over a week, no one on the high seas had seen any ships that had looked like Ragnar’s ships. It was fall and most ships were heading for their home ports soon. The three men had decided to continue to search on land for Ragnar and Athelstan. They would not search as aggressively as they had been, they figured that the fugitive Northman would be flushed out by the cold, damp conditions that would soon overcome the area.

Kattegat  
Sunday Night

Aslaug had gone to bed early tonight, she had had trouble sleeping the past few weeks, she had headaches often and a poor appetite. Whenever she lay down to sleep, she dreamed of Ragnar. King Harald had come a few days ago with word of Ragnar’s death. King Harald had been told of Ragnar’s death by some traders traveling North to his kingdom. Even after hearing of Ragnar’s death, Aslaug still found herself not believing what she had been told. Ragnar had to be alive, somehow, some kind of way. If he was really dead, she would have felt it, she would have been sent some type of sign other than her dreams about Ragnar and Ivar drowning which had proved wrong. Ivar was alive, Ragnar could very well be alive too. Aslaug prayed to the gods for Ragnar’s safety, she also asked Sigurd, Ubbe and Ivar to help her make a sacrifice to Odin on Ragnar’s behalf. Secretly, the boys had very little hope that their father would come back to Kattegat alive, but they didn’t want to diminish their mother’s hopes.  
Widow Edmunds knocked on Aslaug’s door, Aslaug sat up and told the woman to come in. Widow Edmunds came over to Aslaug’s bed and gave her a cup of chamomile tea to help her relax and sleep. Aslaug sat up, thanked the young woman and started drinking the tea. She made a space on the side of her bed, and told Widow Edmunds to take a seat, which she did.  
“Queen Aslaug how do you feel?”  
“Right now, I don’t know how to feel, everyone is saying Ragnar is dead, but the gods have not told me this thing.”  
“Maybe you have not seen a sign because your husband is not dead, you would have a certain feeling if something had happened to him. I remember when my husband Philip was killed, I instinctively knew it before King Eckbert’s men came to tell me.”  
“How long were you married Widow Edmunds?”  
“I was married for about eight months. My husband was killed in a battle in Scotland, he had volunteered to fight on King Eckbert’s behalf, he was killed in battle there.”  
“Ragnar and I were…have been married for over twenty years, he was married once before, Ragnar and I had an affair, that is how his married ended.” Aslaug turned her head to the side, suddenly ashamed.  
“Things just happen Princess Aslaug, I had an affair with King Eckbert, he took me as his lover after my husband died.” Stated Widow Edmunds. “At first, he hired me as a seamstress, he placed me in a room at the castle, he had me make the clothing for he and his family, a few months later, I was his lover. I was his lover until he started sleeping with his daughter-in-law Judith and Princess Kwenthrith from the kingdom of Mercia.”  
“I have heard of Princess Kwenthrith, my husband has a child by her.” Said Aslaug quietly.  
“Princess Kwenthrith quickly lost interest in King Eckbert, she took up with his son and then ran into the arms of Bishop Heahmund when he came to Wessex. Bishop Heahmund is a warrior bishop, he has a reputation on the battlefield as well as off. Rumor is, he fights hard, prays hard and plays hard, if you know what I mean.” Said Widow Edmunds as she and Queen Aslaug laughed. Widow Edmunds continued her story.  
“With King Eckbert’s interest in Judith, and Princess Aethelwulf’s interest in Princess Kwenthrith, Bishop Heahmund had developed an interest in me, one of the church sister’s said that he had inquired about me on several occasions, well this got back to King Eckbert, he was no longer interested in me, but he did not want any other man interested in me either, he made it a point to tell me this. He sent me away from Wessex purely out of spite.” Aslaug looked over at Widow Edmunds.  
“Widow Edmunds, I wouldn’t think about such things now, especially since they make you so sad, you can have a new life here, you don’t have to go back to Wessex, there are some new and promising possibilities here in Kattegat…” teased Aslaug. “I know of at least one warrior who seems very, very interested in you!” Widow Edmunds blushed.  
“Thorstein.”  
“Yes, he makes it a point to come by The Great Hall several times a day to sit around and watch you. So, what do you think of him?”  
“Thorstein is a nice man, I enjoy his company when he stops by.” Aslaug told Widow Edmunds about Thorstein and the things that she knew about him to a curious Widow Edmunds. Widow Edmunds and Queen Aslaug sat on Aslaug’s bed and continued to laugh and talk late into the night. 

 

Sunday Night at Sea  
Ragnar looked out into the open sea. He felt free once again, the time chained up at King Eckbert’s castle was now a distant, unpleasant memory. He felt better now that he was on his way home. He never realized how much he missed home until he thought that he would never see Kattegat again. Ragnar looked around. Bjorn was talking with Athelstan, most of the crew was still awake, Hvitserk and Luitgarde had gone to sleep in each other’s arms a couple of hours ago. The young couple reminded him of he and Lagertha when they first got married. He had loved Lagertha so much and she loved him. He thought of his relationship with Aslaug, his affair with Aslaug had destroyed his marriage to Lagertha. Ragnar had slept with Aslaug because she could give him the sons that he had desired, he admired Aslaug, but he had never loved her, she knew this. To Aslaug’s credit, she had tried to make a home for him, and she had respected him, he had tried to love her, but he always felt guilty about his part in the destruction of his first marriage, every time he looked at Aslaug, he was reminded of what he used to have. The relationship between he and Aslaug had been strained for a number of years, maybe he needed to go back and try to mend his relationship with Aslaug. Ragnar looked over at Halfdan and his girlfriend Saida, he was trying to teach her phrases in Old Norse. The young woman had learned Old Norse pretty quickly and could speak the language fairly well. Halfdan had learned some of the young woman’s language while he was in Morocco. He had found out from her that she had been sold by her parents as a child to a caravan, later she became apart of a harem. Halfdan had grabbed the young woman during his escape after the sandstorm in the desert. She had agreed to come back to the north with him. Ragnar laughed and decided that only time would tell about that relationship.  
Bjorn walked over to his father and sat down. He looked at the older man. Ragnar looked tired. The years of fighting so many battles, physical and emotional had taken their toll on Ragnar. Bjorn studied his father before asking him, “What is on your mind father?” Ragnar thought about what Bjorn had just asked.  
“I am tired son, mentally and physically. Over the past few months I have looked back at my life and there are so many regrets, I don’t regret the success that I have seen or the opportunities for our people, but I regret that I have lost so many people around me and destroyed so many relationships.”  
“Father if you feel this way, you should go back and make amends for your transgressions, some people will not forgive you for what you have done, some people will welcome you with open arms.” Ragnar thought about what his oldest son told him. He knew Bjorn was right, he would go and make things right between him and the people that had helped him become the man that he was. He knew who he had to start with first.  
Ragnar and Bjorn continued on their journey back to the North. Rollo’s ships had sailed with them past the shores of England and had turned back and headed back to Francia, Bjorn had thanked the Frankish captains and continued North. The journey had taken a little over three weeks. The seas were relatively calm considering it was well into November, it was the end of the third week of November. The sailors were entering the fjords of the north. It was getting very cold and the crew was anxious to get home. After three days in the fjord, the group was almost home. Bjorn had decided to stop in Hedeby to see his mother Lagertha, he had told the other captains they would be stopping in Hedeby before they sailed home to Kattegat. Bjorn and his ships got to Hedeby just before dark on a cold Tuesday evening. Lagertha and Kalf were sitting in the hall, Kalf was showing his son Hrolf how to carve a wooden animal, Lagertha was showing Solveig how to do Nalebinding (knitting). One of the young slaves came into the hall and announced that Earl Ingstad had some guests that evening. Lagertha muttered under her breath, just who would be crazy enough to interrupt her quiet evening with her family. Kalf looked up and asked her was she expecting guest and she said no, whoever it was interrupting her evening must have lost their minds she said as she grabbed her sword to give the intruder a piece of her mind. She went to the door of the hall and opened it, standing there was her ex-husband Ragnar Lothbrok, who did indeed look like he had lost his mind. Long gone was the self-confident warrior that had been her lover and father to her children, here stood a man that she no long recognized. Bjorn quickly walked up behind his father, Lagertha, surprised, smiled and welcomed the men.

“Ragnar is that really you, I thought you had been killed, King Harald told me that you were dead. He had been told by English traders that you had died at the hands of King Aelle.” Lagertha walked over to him and kissed him on the cheek, Ragnar smiled.  
“The reports of my death were mere stories, Odin delivered me from the jaws of death. He still finds favor in me.” The two people laughed. Bjorn shook his head and walked into Lagertha’s hall. She welcomed Bjorn and his men into the hall. She told the servants to prepare a meal for the group. The preparations would continue well into the night for the large group. Ragnar greeted Kalf Lagertha’s new husband, who quickly excused himself for the evening. Kalf did not particularly care for Ragnar and he knew Ragnar did not like him, the two men tolerated each other for manpower on raids and because of Lagertha. Ragnar sat down on a bench to begin to tell her of his adventures in England. Lagertha frowned and sniffed, she laughed.  
“Ragnar, you smell, you smell like feet and ass, you need a bath!” Ragnar sniffed and turned up his nose. He could not deny what she was saying. Lagertha got up and guided him to a room that was situated away from the rest of the hall. The room was a medium-sized room equipped with a bathtub and a large fireplace, Lagertha ordered the slaves to prepare Ragnar a bath, he turned and started to undress in front of Lagertha.  
“No point in turning around, there is nothing there that I have not seen before, unless you grew another prick!” Ragnar laughed.  
“I don’t need another prick, the one I have has gotten me into enough trouble over the years!” said Ragnar as he walked over and slide down into the tub. He put his head down under the water, Lagertha walked over and pour a lavender, herb mixture into the water. She kneeled down and began massaging his shoulders and neck. Ragnar glanced over at her.  
“Where is your husband, won’t he be jealous that his wife is in the bath with her ex-husband?”  
“No, Kalf will sit back and keep his mouth shut. He is lucky he is not dead after trying to usurp my kingdom in my absence. He told me that to get my kingdom back, just marry him and he would relinquish his claim, I told him that I could just kill him and take my kingdom. He told me that loved me and desired to marry me, I thought about what he said, so I agreed to marry him, I don’t regret it, I have two children and my kingdom, Kalf is just around for sex.”  
“Are you happy with Kalf?”  
“I cannot complain, we love one another in our own way. What of you and Aslaug, are you happy or does Kwenthrith make you happier?” Ragnar laughed.  
“Aslaug and I…I only married her because she could give me sons, I was never in love with her. I still love you, I wish that you were still my wife, as far as Kwenthrith goes, she was just something to do. I am a man with many regrets, I have hurt many people over the years Lagertha, especially you, I want to ask you to forgive me for being so callous to you and your needs, I put my goals and ambitions before you and Bjorn many days.” Lagertha looked over at the broken man sitting in front of her, she wished that she could take away the pain and hurt that had overtaken Ragnar’s spirit, but she could not, she found herself sharing some of the same pain and hurt that Ragnar suffered from. Her history and his was interwoven, the two of them would share that bond until death. Lagertha and Ragnar sat silently for a while, finally he asked her, “Lagertha, do you have any regrets?” Lagertha thought for a while.  
“Ragnar, I have no regrets, and yet every regret.” The couple sat silently as the fire died down and the room grew cold. Lagertha walked out of the room, Ragnar got dressed and joined Bjorn at the table with the rest of the warriors. The group had decided to leave early on Friday morning, they would get back to Kattegat around noon on Friday. Ragnar wondered if Aslaug had been told about his death, if she had, he wondered how she would react to his being alive. Ragnar realized how much he missed his family, he could not wait to get home to them.

 

Kattegat  
Friday Afternoon

Aslaug sat at the dining table with King Harald. He had been in Kattegat since he had told her that Ragnar was dead. He delivered the news with a less than solemn manner. The sons of Ragnar did not trust King Harald, they had wished that he would leave after he had delivered his message. King Harald had been a childhood friend of their mother Aslaug, they did not wish to offend him, they would need his help if they decided to go to England and avenge their father. The young men usually stayed in their room and kept a close eye on Enid and Bethany, King Harald and his men had been watching the two young girls. Queen Aslaug kept Widow Edmunds close to her. King Harald had stayed and offered “comfort” to Aslaug after he told her of Ragnar’s death. 

“So, what will you do, now that Ragnar has died, you will need a husband to help you protect your kingdom, do you have anyone in mind?” inquired King Harald as he looked over at her. Aslaug knew what King Harald was proposing, he wanted to ask for her hand in marriage, was he crazy, he already had two wives, what would he do with a third? Aslaug knew Harald well, he was ambitious and had been since he was a very young man, he had single handedly taken over Norway, one kingdom at a time, she had no reservations about Harald and his ambition. Aslaug feared for her sons if Harald decided that Kattegat was worth his attention as his next conquest. Right now, she had to be confident she could not show weakness in front of a man such as King Harald. 

“King Harald, I am confident that my sons and I can rule Kattegat in Ragnar’s absence. My sons are strong capable warriors and we are capable of making wise decisions for our people.” King Harald looked at Aslaug, until she married Ragnar, she had never ruled over anything, she was just a princess with a title and no lands, she had grown up poor and did not find out about who her family was until she was seventeen or eighteen years old, her foster family finally told her. Aslaug had obtained a throne by seducing Ragnar and getting pregnant by him which caused his divorce. King Harald knew Aslaug’s history, he admired how she had ruled during Ragnar’s absence, but he wondered how she would rule under pressure, how would she do if her lands were taken over. Harald sat and studied Aslaug, he was developing a plan, but it would take time to execute however, maybe next year this time, Kattegat would be his. He thought on this as he poured himself another cup of ale. It was noon and Sigurd, Ubbe and Ivar escorted Margrethe, Enid and Bethany to the noontime meal. There was a loud clap of thunder and the entire hall shook. It had started snowing earlier and was continuing to snow. The thunder snow was an omen to Queen Aslaug, she felt something was going to happen that day, she didn’t know what, she had been kept awake the night before by the gods, they were talking to her, but she could not make out what they were saying. She got up to go the back to tell the slaves to prepare a noon meal for her and her family, as she turned to go to the back of the hall, the double doors of the hall swung open, in walked Ragnar, Bjorn, Athelstan, Hvitserk, his wife and Halfdan and his girlfriend. King Harald choked on his horn of ale, as Aslaug feel into a dead faint in front of Ragnar and Bjorn.

**Author's Note:**

> This story is a work in progress, I am still deciding which way this story will go.


End file.
